





* > H 


IPS#/ % 

" N ° 

% # % cf 

tP « ,$v \#r T/-’ 7, 7 ^ X> 

o 



/ %. \lgpv #* \ 

^ ''*»'' 4 \ x I -1 • , J t> ' *> * * if-' 0 •*O „ •- 

•** ' ••” 1 - 


0 X 


f # ^ 


c 0 N c a ’<* 

; •*/- y* . 

x 0 O x * o ^ 

' "-'■ >°\v >/ '*%' '**' ’v< * * . /V * 7 ' ' */• V . * 

a or #«% o <?‘ As * ,;\' ;<-v /l <* *>> <A 

^ A « xsMJA ; V 

A ° wis 




%*1 


sA >v <> ° V ivs \>r * 

^ <> % - <f> 

<D y o * >. ^ vO < 

^ f c° n f ^ 





| ^ - - «II\\>N>Cn c A 

'.o\,./o -‘ '-’A • 

' s r * Cr. V * 

rf> 


s*\ \w&: ^\ a -> . 



% .# : 


K v r> %7^ s ' a N c < 

0 N (,’ ^ * * * S ^\ V I B Q ^ 0 ■ qV c. ° N C -f 

.ax' 1 + J . A-#"j 

"■ *- . "K^rX o *0^01 ' 

°0 <, w r s T?ljT <■ 





f # 

o’*#; V‘*r,',‘' 4°' 

> # ■ 
•%, # * 


0^' sx c 

* 


•* 

<^> y 0 J? V ^ \0 v 

v‘V~*-. ' b o # 

<v <S?5v\vS N |'^fik ^ 


\0°> 


K: : 

, N# * 

# ^ t- s' (V> 


> 0 M o 5 # . #, ‘ 

„ v' ,<:>•, > . ■ 

%/ -* 


# <?' 



% # 



® c% '^> 

A <^ V 
6 \0 V 

v> c 0 N c 3 


























AT ©. > 3n0 - 

v O V „ S * O 

^ ^ ■'**'- ^ ^ C, 

: ^ ,^ v * 



* y * <§ 
V\ J 


w* # 






eo 

* a‘ 

v , «» ■ V- > - - -*■ O^ 

* ^ O ' 0 * X * ^ 

f 0 ‘ c° N, '« vi x ■ « ll, » °j ,.cy „ c 

V* “ *„ '"o 0 <t ; 



v - r s? 5 ) * 

* <?r. \\> *- -IN^^/l- r ' 






4 


A *T* '>> 

-A °. ^ . . 

< 3 > ' " * * S \^> * V t 8 * A? ’ " O ^* 0 t 0 N °' * ^ 

A % v/ % x 0 ^ * 

;% c a ^ >• ^ 

/ v v „,v^'.^t. # VSy S ,*/V 

.<?* s s r /y O V F s Cy S s f ,, *c> 

V v <£> y a 3 s * . A V ^ * 

* #TviA. <, r<; A, * r n -JJf 3 * 4f^Wm « 

: **# ?mMb * ; 

<* -C) ^ A^bfir ^--7 iT v\V </> ^ 

% wv** ^ slip,* ^ % -JML'v 

y 0 , X * ^6 ' ' * * ' s .\ X . , fl ^ y 0 * X * ^6 

>* .<•“ " *« „ % ,^ x , * l Ll *, % 0 * , 


❖ r\ 
v <(T 






*»■' °o 


-O' 


, * 



c- ■» 

^^ o x f - 
^ A++ t 

\> X% ^ " * 0 A A> 8 1 ' 0 * sS r r *f^c 

*i<& = u * y ® S% “ 

r ^ \ ^ ^ \ v 


* y s ^y 5 ~-’ <j o 
^ .9 N 0 ^ ^ 

% ^ ^ ° 0 /- 
y ^ 

^■a s :M» 

% 


'• <p 






\ 0 o w. 


C* 


V *-•, -> 

^ 5 =) ^ ^ A^ S «**< 0 *&. ^ 

.'M; - 

vV <?. 


5 <x ^ " #% 




















































Tuiuri?' 


■«rn I/ofhluJi 


'*• l'll i ll 


JJrumrhoi\Jf\^^ ,f . 

C**de. -**5? 


S'tiu'liitrhi'ti 


•rest of (Henan 


'dwhiUi 


Orchill 


q Unman famp 
ckxloch 


Bracklin xY ascade 
; Vf UtLert vHo use\ 

—allauilel- 


Z^irkla 


linvntnrurut 


Call rf Water 
iatejMkr 


l ^-Cumb usmo\ 
\ o Baliaciui 


KinbucJc 


J. Jjru/iAy 


Jtrunkv 


Kilbruic (astie 

v 


le/uiti vie 


? I)uml» lane 

B&. ( 


•itrhtvn 


Brainitam 


Kihumlo ,Ti\\o 
) Deansb wil 


Blarhult 


•USe 


?""' m faring 


L- oT'MonieitJi 


"(rartirU'dber 


Koch end 


.LatArmd 


liis fir 


BlarsASTwcb 


Car tun 


YU It we 


[t aiphetui 


V v [C rtirossBouse 


Blair dr unifn 


Bold- 


‘n/ian 


Vbejtpraiq 


>t Blarrorsn 


91 n. V/C,^ 

Stirliiiov 


'SBU'tit/y 


•tsartfun 


.Arrutup v 

ii. fifof 


JirikieiriHul 


/ ambu . 


sf/aro/t | “ 

*T** 5 .sJ^riaa. 

* . liartur ‘ 


Ucbiivie 


nUwBh-n 


(yreenYaids 


r K 

\ - '< 

Airtii 

Airtii House 


iBallrun 


Balaam 


Aehmar, 

•tzri -r. 


lue/mu'i/, 


traiijofrrn 


'/rue, 


Ballindailorh • 


•ru in tent ofJSapier 
of Mrrrltistpn 


^ '^^BaHibrnmin 


l’“-b 

.‘hi/ 1 - 11/1 


l ck-P‘‘ 7^ Kill earn 

■ x 


KilmaronueJs 


Torwood 


..isuli \ Boflflsenn, 
(amv(/' °i2z// 
Car ran 
L arhi-rt" 0 cr^i 

- \W>rki 


Dunarenn 


('arrrrp-JBot. 


t/uurh. 


'eiu IV 


n r«*t> BennarJiru 

^Urnmtark 

. ' 1 1 limb-/*: ikw 


tf&rh htstiy 

\ 

i ltir'/i/>/nene at' Tobias Smot/et 


Jierbertshn 


• atamrtor 
Snout >C 
Bnltutpun 


MeikleBin 


T.*J/-txh,;i-een 

StrathhlaiLt- 


< iunn>\^ 

Wot’//he, nl 


pje/oten 

Darlot/h . 

Autarp/din 

lurk «if < anlnu* 

Ardstch 


KilsvtU 


•ura 


tf,U nfAriS* 


r*T 

fru / 1 /inntiUK’ 


•yen Ante 


t astir tiny 


Cumbernauld 




tvn bv r he H, vi M ’ tn Stir/ltUf, (torn various aiithonfirj 


V // raj//,; 



































































SKETCHES 


* 


OF 

PERTHSHIRE. 

BY THE 

REV. P.'gRAHAM, D.D. 


/ 




/ 

ti $ 


THE SECOND EDITION. 



EDINBURGH : 

©rmteti bg 3fames 3BalIantgne anti Co. 


FOR PETER HILL, AND JOHN BALLANTYNE AND C0»; 

AND FOR 

LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, AND CO., 















































































• • 


• • 
• • » 
















# (r-r 




































TO 

HER GRACE 

THE DUCHESS OF MONTROSE, 

THESE 

&kett8ess of &mterp, 

(the most extensive and interesting part of which 
is included in the duke’s estates,) 

ARE, 

WITH GREAT RESPECT, INSCRIBED 
BY 

HER GRACE’S MOST OBEDIENT, 

AND MOST OBLIGED SERVANT, 


PATRICK GRAHAM. 







CONTENTS. 


PAGE. 


Introduction, .i 

Routes to the Trosachs, &c. .... IS 

I. From the North, by Dunblane, . . . 15 

Dunblane,.24 

II. From the East, by Stirling, .... 32 

From Stirling to Aberfoyle, by Blairdrummond, 38 

From Port of Menteith to Aberfoyle, . . 50 

From Stirling, by Kier and Doune, . . • 51 

Callander,.63 

Geological Hints applicable to this Dictrict, • 77 

From Callander to the Trosachs, ... 92 

From Dunbarton to Kilmaronock, . . .146 

From Drymen to Rowardennan, , . .153 

Description of Benlomond, . . . .157 

From Drymen to Gartraore and Aberfoyle, . 169 
Gartmore, ....... 171 

Aberfoyle, . • • . . .173 










IV 


CONTENTS. 


Lochard, ..... 

. . 

PAGE. 

182 

Upper Lochard, .... 

. . 

185 

Lochcon, . 

. . 

189 

From Aberfoyle Inn, across the Mountain, 

to the 


Trosachs, ..... 

. . 

196 

Craig*vad View, 

• . 

198 

Natural History, . .. . 

. 

203 

Plants,. 


204 

Animals, . 

. . 

214 

Soil and Climate of this District, 

. . 

221 

Manners and Character, &c. of the People, 

. 

225 

Superstitions, of the Highlanders, 

. . 

243 




INTRODUCTION. 


The county of Perth, throughout its 
whole extent, has been long admired 
and justly celebrated for the sublimity 
and the beauty of its scenery. But that 
portion of it which is situated upon the 
south-western frontier, together with 
the adjoining district of Stirlingshire, 
which stretches along the eastern shore 
of Lochlomond, (of which it is also pro- 


A 




posed to offer some account) has, of 
late years, attracted the particular at¬ 
tention and admiration of travellers. 

This most interesting scenery has, in¬ 
deed, for some time past, been the fa¬ 
vourite resort of strangers from every 
quarter of the united kingdom. This 
has arisen partly from the intrinsic 
charms which they are pleased to as¬ 
cribe to it, and partly from the present 
exclusion of Britons from the conti¬ 
nent, in consequence of the rigours of 
a savage and jealous despotism. 

To these causes of increasing resort 
to this quarter of Scotland, may be add¬ 
ed another of recent occurrence. Mr 


Ill 


Walter Scott, by adopting it as the 
scene of the transactions of his justly 
admired poem, The Lady of the Lake , 
has rendered it classic ground. At pre¬ 
sent, the topography of this region, 


“ From lone Glenartney’s hazel shade,” 

on the north-east, 

“ E’en to the pass of Bealmaha,” 

on the south-west, including an ample 
range of country, adorned with woods, 
lakes, and rivers, with fertile vales, and 
lofty mountains, has become as inte¬ 
resting to the admirers of Mr Scott’s 


IV 


popular poem, as that of the Troad is 
to the admirers of Homer, 

These “ Sketches, descriptive of Pic¬ 
turesque Scenery on the southern Con¬ 
fines of Perthshire, including the Tro- 
sachs, Lochard, &c.” were first pub¬ 
lished in 180 b, and were honoured, 
even in the defective state in which 
they then appeared, by the favourable 
reception of the public. Mr Scott, 
by citing them repeatedly in flatter¬ 
ing terms, in the notes to his celebra¬ 
ted poem, has contributed much to the 
credit of that little volume; and the 
edition being exhausted, the author 
takes the liberty of offering another, 


V 


which, he hopes, will be found freed 
from several imperfections, and sup¬ 
plied with many subjects which were 
desiderated in the former. 

This edition has, particularly, the 
advantage of a map, delineated by the 
author’s friend, the Reverend William 
Stirling, minister of Port. In this map 
reference is had to the topography of 
the Lady of the Lake ; and the several 
routes are set down, to enable the stran¬ 
ger the more advantageously to direct 
his course. The recent delineation of 
this region by Mr Arrowsmith, which 
is, in general, extremely accurate, toge¬ 
ther with his scale, is adopted. Some 


VI 


alterations are made from local know¬ 
ledge, and from the communications 
of intelligent friends. In particular, 
it is presumed that the Archipelago of 
Lochlomond will be found more faith¬ 
fully pourtrayed in this map than it has 
been in any other; indeed, from Mr 
Stirling’s having taken the trouble to 
superintend the execution of the map 
himself, it is hoped that it will be con¬ 
sidered as the very best specimen of 
North British geographic engraving 
now extant. 

By the suggestion of several intelli¬ 
gent tourists, it was intended to have 
enriched this edition with some beau- 


V1X 


tiful drawings in perspective, of the 
most remarkable scenes described in 
the volume. The drawings were ac¬ 
tually furnished by Mr Stirling, who 
sometimes relieves his professional oc¬ 
cupations with the elegant and permis¬ 
sible amusement of the pencil. Cir¬ 
cumstances have interfered to prevent 
the present publication being enriched 
with these drawings. It is probable, 
however, that Mr Stirling will soon 
publish them upon his own accountj 
and the public will then have it in their 
power to add the delineations of the 
pencil to the descriptions of the pen. 

The author presumes to add, that a 


circumstance occurred to him several 
years ago, which, without any merit 
on his part, may be considered as qua¬ 
lifying him, in some slight degree, for 
this undertaking. When the Messrs 
Boydells of London, in 1792, propo¬ 
sed to publish the description of the 
four rivers, the Thames, the Severn, 
the Forth, and the Clyde, from their 
sources to the sea, they employed the 
ingenious Mr Farrington of the Royal 
Academy, to execute the drawings of 
the adjacent scenery. The author of 
these Sketches had the happiness to at¬ 
tend that accomplished artist for se¬ 
veral days, whilst he was employed in 


IX 


the quarter which it is now proposed 
to describe; and it was his office to 
accompany the delineations of the pen¬ 
cil with a verbal description , which Mr 
Farrington regularly revised. 

The proposed work of the Boydells 
having been long ago abandoned, the 
writer now considers himself at liberty 
to employ the notes which he took 
down on those occasions for Mr Far¬ 
rington ; and he even hopes that they 
may be found of some service, to young 
artists at least, by suggesting the points 
of view which were chosen by so emi¬ 
nent a master, as well as the mode by 
which he constructed his outline. 


X 


As few districts in Scotland present 
a more fertile field to the botanist than 
this, the rarer native plants are enu¬ 
merated ; and the labour and uncer¬ 
tainty of finding them is lessened by 
pointing out the particular places of 
their growth. Some account is given 
of the animals and minerals of the 
neighbourhood. These Notices of Na¬ 
tural History are thrown into a sepa¬ 
rate section ; and it is hoped that the 
general reader will forgive them, for 
the sake of the admirers of an elegant 
and useful science, numbers of whom 
are attracted hither every summer. Oc¬ 
casional remarks are offered on the 


XI 


soil, the climate, and meteorology of 
this part of the Highlands ; some ac¬ 
count is given of the language, the 
manners, and history of the country, 
and of the popular superstitions which 
still prevail. 




















-» 






























« 





















% 















SKETCHES 

OF 

PICTURESQUE SCENERY, &c. 


The routes by which this Switzerland of 
North Britain may be approached, vary ac¬ 
cording to the quarter from which the travel¬ 
ler comes. 

1. To those from the north of Scotland, 
two roads offer themselves, each presenting its 
own interesting beauties, that by Crieff or 
Auchterarder, to Dunblane and Callander; 




14 


or that by Killin and Lochearn-head to Cal¬ 
lander. 

2. Travellers from the east, by Stirling, 
may take the road by Kier and the village of 
Doune, to Callander; or that by Blairdrum- 
mond to Aberfoyle. 

3. Those from Glasgow, or, in general, 
from the south and west, take the road by 
Drymen and Gartmore to Aberfoyle. 

To describe each of these routes, together 
with the distances, the accommodations, and 
the interesting objects which they offer to the 
tourist, will be the principal business of the 
ensuing pages. 


15 


I. FROM THE NORTH, BY DUNBLANE. 


The great road, which furnishes a commu¬ 
nication between the north and south of Scot¬ 
land, by Stirling, passes through Dunblane. 
In coming from Perth, the nearest route is by 
Auchterarder, in the vicinity of which, by the 
road side, stands the ancient cemetery of the 
noble family of Montrose. This road is soon 
to be made turnpike. Crieff is a neat village, 
picturesquely situated, and furnishing com¬ 
fortable accommodations to the stranger. 

Should he have leisure to enjoy, in detail, 

the beautiful and sublime scenery of this 
12 



16 


neighbourhood, he will do well to extend his 
excursion, by the vale of the Erne, to the 
opening of the lake of that name, the distance 
from Crieff being about twelve miles. He will 
remark several elegant seats in his course, par¬ 
ticularly Ochtertyre, the residence of Sir Pa¬ 
trick Murray, Bart.; and Drummond Castle, 
the mansion of the Honourable Mr Burrell 
Drummond. Passing the village of Comrie, in 
the very emboucheure of the Highlands, about 
two miles, he arrives at Dunira, the roman¬ 
tic seat of Lord Viscount Melville, and the 
creation of his ever-to-be-revered father. Na¬ 
ture and art have happily combined in the 
embellishment of Dunira. Nature has given 
lofty mountains, precipitous rocks, waving 
woods, and a beautiful river. All that taste 
and genius could suggest is added ,* an elegant 
house and garden, flourishing plantations ju¬ 
diciously disposed, and a lawn, which, in the 


17 


very bosom of rugged rocks and mountains, 
surprises the eye by its extent, contribute to 
render this one of the most interesting places 
in the Highlands of Scotland. To give some 
idea of the extent of the pleasure grounds of 
Dunira, it may be added, that it is reckoned 
that there are about thirty miles of gravel 
walks and artificial foot-paths, with fog or 
moss houses, at convenient distances, within 
their bounds. On the higher eminences, by 
the side of these foot-paths, the arbutus uva 
ursi, of such use as an astringent medicine, 
may be found in great profusion. 

But it may be permitted to remark, that in 
contemplating this favourite residence of our 
late lamented statesman and patriot, so justly 
his country’s pride, some feelings of a higher 
order than the mere admiration of scenery, 
however magnificent, will irresistibly rush up¬ 
on the mind. When we call to our recollec- 

B 


18 


tion the nefarious attempts which were made, 
soon after the French revolution to involve us 
in similar anarchy, and when we consider the 
means by which, under the favour of a kind 
Providence, we have been rescued from this 
ruin ; when we look around us at this mo¬ 
ment to the wreck of empires which is exhi¬ 
bited upon the continent of Europe; and when 
we consider the proud pre-eminence which 
Britain still maintains amongst nations, can 
we forget that it was William Pitt, second¬ 
ed and supported by his undaunted and ener¬ 
getic friend Henry Dundas, who stemmed 
the torrent of revolution in our country, and 
laid the foundation of that security which 
we now enjoy ? Whilst the feeling of this se¬ 
curity and independence, which the contem¬ 
plation of our yet unimpaired constitution 
inspires, remains among Britons, the me¬ 
mory of Henry Lord Melville will live. The 


19 


meed of those also, who had the honour of 
co-operating in the public measures of those 
great men, will be rich in the estimation of 
posterity, and precious to their own minds. 

Lochearn is about seven miles long. There 
is a good road, by both sides of the lake, to 
Lochearn-head ; its surface is about 300 feet 
above the level of the sea; it is for the most 
part beautifully skirted with coppice wood. 
On the south side, Benvorlich towers majes¬ 
tically to the height of 3000 feet above the 
level of the lake. Ardvorlich-house, the seat 
of William Stewart, Esq. is situated on the 
margin of the lake, at the very base of the 
mountain. On the north-east shoulder of 
Benvorlich, the botanist will find that rare 
plant, the azalea procumbens , in a profusion 
which does not often occur. This minutest of 
all the British shrubs is said to sell among the 
London nurserymen and florists at half-a- 


20 


guinea each plant. At this rate, the laird of 
Ardvorlich may make more by an acre of this 
shoulder of his mountain, than can possibly 
be made by an acre of the richest land in 
Britain. 

By either side of Lochearn, the tourist may 
proceed to Locliearn-head, where he will meet 
with comfortable accommodations. He may 
find his way to the same place from Killin by 
a good road, through Glenogill, of about eight 
miles. From Lochearn-head he may proceed 
to Callander, by Balquhidder. In this route, 
he will be gratified with many interesting ob¬ 
jects. The vale of Balquhidder is traversed 
through its whole course, by the water of Bal- 
vac, (or the silent , from the tranquillity of its 
current.) At its western extremity, a little be¬ 
yond the church, Lochvoil opens, and Loch- 
duine is joined to it on the west by a narrow 
channel. These lakes are bounded on each 


21 


side by lofty and precipitous mountains, af¬ 
fording rich sheep pasture. 

From Lochearn-head to Callander is 131 
miles; the road, through Strath-ire, by the 
northern bank of Lochlubnaig, is exellent, and 
the surrounding scenery delightful; about 
mid-way down the lake, we pass Ardchullerie, 
where Mr Bruce of Kinnaird resided for some 
years for the sake of retirement, whilst enga¬ 
ged in composing the valuable account of his 
travels in Abyssinia, relieving the severity of 
his studies occasionally with rural sports, 
for which this romantic spot is so admirably 
calculated. Just opposite to Ardchullerie, 
Benledi bathes, as it were, its sable skirts in 
the gulf below, which seems to be tinged with 
its solemn hue. 

Without anticipating, however, the descrip¬ 
tion of Benledi, which seems more properly to 
belong to an excursion from Callander, let it 


22 


suffice to say, that the road from Balquhidder 
by Lochlubnaig, passes by St Bride’s chapel, 
through the pass of Leney, to that village. 


If the tourist from the north, instead of 
exploring the valley of the Erne, as far as the 
lake of that name, chuses to pass on directly 
by Dunblane, he will not omit to examine one 
of the most entire and beautiful remains of a 
Roman encampment that is now to be fouud 
in Scotland. It is to be seen at Ardoch, near 
Greenloaning, about six miles to the east¬ 
ward of Dunblane. This encampment is sup¬ 
posed, on good grounds, to have been con¬ 
structed during the fourth campaign of Agri¬ 
cola in Britain; it is 1060 feet in length, and 

900 in breadth ; it could contain 26,000 men, 

8 



23 


according to the ordinary distribution of the 
Roman soldiers in their encampments. There 
appear to have been three or four ditches, 
strongly fortified, surrounding the camp. The 
four entries crossing the lines are still to be 
seen distinctly. The general's quarter rises 
above the level of the camp, but is not exactly 
in the centre. It is a regular square of twen¬ 
ty yards, enclosed with a stone wall, and con¬ 
taining the foundations of a house, 30 feet by 
20. There is a subterraneous communication 
with a smaller encampment at a little distance, 
in which several Roman helmets, spears, &c. 
have been found. From this camp at Ardoch, 
the great Roman highway runs east to Bertha, 
about 14? miles distant, where the Roman ar¬ 
my is believed to have passed over the Tay, 
into Strathmore. 

In proceeding towards Dunblane, we pass 
the Sheriff-muir on the left, the scene of the 


24 


eng a gement between the royal forces under 
the Duke of Argyle, and those of Prince 
Charles, under the Earl of Marr, in 1715. 


DUNBLANE. 

Dunblane, which, though from its having 
been formerly the seat of a bishopric, it may 
claim the appellation of a city, is only a small 
village, picturesquely situated in a little valley, 
upon the banks of the here rapid, and not un¬ 
dignified river, Allan, and is chiefly remark¬ 
able for its cathedral; this is one of the few 
specimens of ancient Gothic architecture 
which escaped the ill-advised fury of the first 
reformers. This cathedral was founded by 
David I. in 1142, and had considerable re¬ 
venues annexed to it in Scotland, besides some 


25 


lands attached to it in England. It is situ¬ 
ated upon an eminence, as the name imports.* 
The choir, or chancel, is the only part of it 
which retains the roof, and is now used as the 
parochial place of worship. At the west end 
are 32 prebends’ stalls, and on the north of the 
entrance to the cathedral, the seats of the bi¬ 
shop and dean, both of oak and handsomely 
carved. The length of the building is 216 
feet, and the breadth 76; the height of the 
walls 50. The spire, the height of which is 
128 feet, is partly a more modern building, 
two stories having been added to it by Bishop 
Leighton. The boundary of the ancient 
and modern part is marked by the different 
colour and consistency of the stone. The 
church, to the west of the chancel, being un- 


1 Dunblane signifies the eminence of the warm, or 
sheltered river. 



26 


roofed, is fast going into decay; but the au¬ 
thor is happy to have it in his power to record, 
that the noblemen and gentlemen of the neigh¬ 
bourhood, to their great honour, are, at this 
moment, exerting themselves to preserve this 
venerable fabric from ruin; they have, by 
private contribution, raised a sum of money 
for this purpose, which, with the addition of 
.£100 obtained from the exchequer, amounts 
to £500 ; and the proposed repairs are now 
actually begun. The exact appearance of the 
ruin, however, is to be preserved, without 
adding any thing that may suggest the idea of 
modern repair. 

Dr Robert Leighton, who was ordained 
Bishop of Dunblane in 1662, and afterwards 
promoted to the archbishopric of Glasgow, 
endowed a valuable library here, by a dona¬ 
tion of an ample collection of the ancient fa¬ 
thers, and a choice assortment of Greek and 


27 


Roman classics; the same amiable and ac¬ 
complished prelate also bequeathed to this 
institution a house for the library, with a fund 
for paying a librarian, and for making further 
additions from time to time of reputable pub¬ 
lications, under the direction of constitutional 
curators. 

It ought not to be omitted, that to some 
private gentlemen, this institution is indebted 
for many valuable donations. In particular, 
we perceive a considerable number of curious 
volumes in various departments of literature 
and science, from John Barclay, M. D. of 
Edinburgh; and the late very splendid edi¬ 
tion of the Poems of Ossian in the original 
Gaelic, (a language once vernacular at Dun¬ 
blane) with a Latin translation by Robert 
Macfarlane, Esq.; a present from Sir John 
Macgregor Murray of Lanrick and Balquhid- 
der, Bart. 


28 


Here the antiquarian will be gratified by 
finding the large and splendid publication of 
the celebrated architect, Adam, (some time 
ago also presented to this library) in which 
the palace of Dioclesian in Dalmatia is repre¬ 
sented by the art of the engraver in its pre¬ 
sent ruinous condition, in contrast with the 
beauty and perfection which it is presumed to 
have originally had. 

In the centre of the town stands what was 
formerly the bishop's palace; and which, 
though still retaining in its enriched cornices, 
that once were white, some traces of its an¬ 
cient grandeur, is now metamorphosed into 
hay-lofts, warehouses, and whisky shops: 

Sic transit Gloria mundu 

“ Imperial Caesar, dead and turned to clay, 

“ May stop a hole to keep the wind away.” 


The environs of Dunblane present several 


29 


objects that merit the attention of the tourist. 
From the western window of the principal 
room of the inn, at the bridge, a view may be 
had, which is much admired by draughtsmen. 
The village, with the cathedral towering over 
it at the further extremity, through whose un¬ 
latticed windows and broken arches the sky is 
seen; the river, the rapidity of which pleases 
the eye and the ear, and which receives an ac¬ 
cession of sprightliness in good weather, from 
the frequent resort of the inhabitants, either 
for domestic purposes, or for relaxation, all 
form an interesting picture. 

At the lower end of the town begins the 
romantic, though artificial walk, of Kippen- 
ross, shaded by a close-set row of aged but 
luxuriant beeches, and stretching along the 
banks of the river that brawls underneath. 
Near the further extremity of this walk, in the 
lawn of Kippenross, the beautiful seat of John 


30 


Stirling of Kippendavie, Esq. you meet with a 
plane, or sycamore tree, supposed to be the 
largest of that species in Scotland. The cir¬ 
cumference at the ground is 27 feet, the height 
of the trunk is 13 feet; the effect of the branches 
seen from beneath, stretching over a circle of 
100 feet in diameter, enriched with mosses, 
and alternately illuminated by the sun’s rays, 
and darkened by their own foliage, though 
beyond the jurisdiction of the pencil, which 
aspires principally to the delineation of ob¬ 
jects that are horizontal, cannot fail to make a 
solemn impression on the spectator. 

The visitant of this scenery from the north, 
in passing from Dunblane to the village of 
Doune, the distance being about four miles, 
leaves Kilbride castle, the seat of Sir Alexan¬ 
der Campbell, Baronet, on a very command¬ 
ing eminence on the right; and a little far¬ 
ther on, Argaty, the seat of Monro Binning, 


31 


Esq. When just about entering the village 
of Doune, he leaves Newton, the seat of James 
Edmonstone, Esq. on the left, whilst he is gra¬ 
tified with a very advantageous peep of the 
extensive and luxuriant plantations of Blair- 
drummond, in the same direction. 

Having thus endeavoured to conduct our 
tourist from the north as far as Doune, reser¬ 
ving the further description of that vicinity to 
a future occasion, let us now suppose that he 
comes from the east, by Stirling, on his visit 
to this now classic scenery. This brings us to 
the second division of these Sketches. 



32 


II. FROM THE EAST, BY STIRLING. 


Stirling, well styled by our poet “ the 
bulwark of the north,” presents a great vari¬ 
ety of objects, well calculated to interest and 
to gratify every traveller of taste. Situated 
on a basaltic rock, projecting with a bold and 
perpendicular front towards the west, and 
sloping with a gradual descent towards the 
east, the castle and town of Stirling exhibit a 
miniature of the castle and old town of Edin¬ 
burgh ; though it may be allowed that Stir¬ 
ling castle surpasses its metropolitan proto¬ 
type considerably in picturesque and roman- 



33 


tic effect. Of its superiority, in this respect, 
the spectator may be convinced, by taking his 
station in many places in the vicinity, but par¬ 
ticularly from what is called the Cambusbar- 
ron road, to the south of Stirling, and towards 
the elegant seat of John Graham of Gartur, 
Esq. You see, looking over the basaltic rocks 
on the south of the king's park, the castle, 
and the Franciscan tower, catching the rays 
of the sun; and the scenery is highly im¬ 
proved, if, from the condition of the atmos¬ 
phere, the Ochill regions, which constitute 
the back-ground, happen to be in the shade. 

The bird’s-eye view from the esplanade of 
the castle is very striking. In a clear day, you 
see the mountains of Argyleshire, of Dunbar¬ 
tonshire, and of Perthshire, rising in proud 
magnificence on the west and north-west. On 
the east, you see as far as Edinburgh, whilst 
you have under the eye, the opening of the 


c 


34 


Firth, and the river Forth slowly winding in 
its serpentine course through the richest vale 
of Scotland, abundantly adorned with villages 
and the seats of noblemen and gentlemen, sur¬ 
rounded with thriving woods and plantations. 

It may be admitted, however, that the 
windings, or links of the Forth, as they are 
called, as seen from the castle of Stirling, are 
broken into too many small parts to delight 
the eye which searches for that simplicity 
which is so essential to picturesque effect. 
There is, at the same time, a station which 
may be had in a forenoon’s walk from Stir¬ 
ling, whence the eye is enabled, without per¬ 
plexity, to trace the various windings of the 
Forth with uncommon advantage,* the station 
alluded to is Dumiat, or Demy at y one of the 
loftiest of the Ochill hills. There the windings 
of the Forth call up the idea of some fabled 
serpent stretching its enormous volume over 


35 


an extensive region, not, however, to destro}, 
but to fertilize; a region which presents to 
the elevated spectator a picture of plenty, 
partly the gift of nature, and partly the just 
meed of industry. 

An amusing anecdote, in illustration of the 
interest which the Dumiat prospect claims, is 
related of the Laird of Spitta], one of the for¬ 
mer proprietors of this mountain. He hap¬ 
pened to meet with some English gentlemen, 
when on his travels at Rome. The conversa^ 
tion turned upon views and picturesque sce¬ 
nery. “ Of all the prospects that I have evei 
<c beheld,” said one of the gentlemen, “ in 
“ any quarter of Europe, that which I once 
“ had from a mountain in Scotland called 
66 Dumiat, is the most magnificent.” The 
Laird of Spittal had never been upon that 
part of his property; he felt some confusion, 
and was silent; he hastened home from Italy 


36 


and lost no time in ascending his own moun¬ 
tain. 

At the base of the Ochills, near their west¬ 
ern extremity., is Aithrey, the seat of Sir Ro¬ 
bert Abercrombie, Knight of the Bath. In 
the park there are 53 acres of artificial water, 
on ground, which, from its soil and situation, 
might bring £% per acre annually; but so 
great is the beauty of this water-piece, wind¬ 
ing round gently swelling eminences, which 
are sprinkled with elegant standard trees, de¬ 
pastured by sheep, and contiguous to a lofty 
back-ground of shelving rocks, adorned in 
every crevice with varied and thriving plan¬ 
tations, that no person of taste can deem the 
sacrifice of utility too great. 

From Stirling, a turnpike road leads by the 
southern verge of the great vale of Menteith to 
Dunbarton, by Drymen, presenting many ele¬ 
gant and ornamented seats to the view. On the 


37 


left is Touch, the seat of-Seton, Esq. On 

the right, Gargunnock, the seat of-Eding- 

ton, Esq.; Leckie, the seat of Dr Graham 

Moir; and Boquham, that of-Fletcher, 

Esq. From the village of Kippen one of the 
finest views presents itself that can be imagined, 
of the grand amphitheatre of mountains that 
rise on the »north and west; Benlomond, Ben- 
venue, Benledi, Stuckchroan, and Benvorlich, 
bound the horizon through near half its circle. 
On the right, Cardross, the seat of David 
Erskine, Esq. is conspicuous, surrounded by 
a fine lawn, adorned with trees of various 
species and of ancient growth. In the remote 
distance, Gartmore, the ornamented residence 
of William C. Cunninghame Graham, Esq. 
forms a distinguished object. 


38 


FROM STIRLING TO ABERFOYLE, 
BY BLAIRDRUMMOND. 

This is a route that is frequently chosen 
by the tourist, as it leads directly to Aber- 
foyle, the distance being 20 miles; whence, 
after having explored the beauties of that re¬ 
gion, he may reach the Trosachs by a journey 
of 5f miles across the hill, and return by Cal¬ 
lander. A short description of this route, 
therefore, may be requisite. 

Soon after leaving Stirling, he passes by 
Craigforth-house, the seat of Colonel Callan¬ 
der, very picturesquely situated upon a rock, 
precipitous on the west, and sloping gently 
towards the east like the rock on which Stir¬ 
ling Castle stands As he advances, after cross¬ 
ing the Forth, a little after its junction with 


39 


the Teith by the bridge of Drip, he passes 
Ochtertyre, the seat of John Ramsay, Esq. 
a correspondent of the poet Burns, and the 
author of many classical Latin epitaphs. 

The elegant mansion of Blairdrummond, 
with its extensive lawn, finely besprinkled with 
trees of various species, a great proportion of 
which are a century old, and whose growth is 
commensurate with their age, now opens up¬ 
on the view. This is the seat of Henry Drum¬ 
mond, Esq. and was the favourite retreat of 
the late celebrated Henry Home Drummond, 
Lord Karnes, from his forensic labours. If 
the traveller feels any reverence for depart¬ 
ed eminence in the varied walks of literature, 
jurisprudence, and philosophy, he will ap¬ 
proach with respect this scene of the studies 
and relaxations of one of the most distin¬ 
guished ornaments of that circle of learned 
and ingenious men, who, during the last forty 


40 


years of the last century, poured, from these 
hyperborean regions, a stream of light upon 
Britain and upon Europe. Need the reader to 
be reminded of the illustrious names of Adam 
Smith, the father of modern political eco¬ 
nomy, Dr Reid, the illustrator of the true 
science of mind, Dr Robertson, David Hume, 
and John Home, the author of the tragedy of 
Douglas, with many others, who occasionally 
partook of the nodes c&nce deornm at Blair- 
drummond ? 

The road from Blairdrummond by Thorn¬ 
hill presents no object of considerable inte¬ 
rest, till we reach Rednock-house, the seat of 
Major General Graham Stirling of Duchray 
and Auchyle. Here, a situation not eminent¬ 
ly favoured by nature, has received almost all 
the ornamental improvement which art can 
bestow. A very fine lawn, with extensive and 
thriving plantations judiciously disposed, af- 


41 


ford a fine relief to the dreariness of the ad¬ 
jacent moss- Indeed, the exertions of Gene¬ 
ral Graham Stirling, and of his enterprising 
neighbour Mr Erskine of Cardross, have gi¬ 
ven a new and very pleasing aspect to this 
whole tract of country. 

A meteorological phenomenon, which is 
frequently observed from the more elevated 
grounds on this route, must not be omitted. 
In the hot days of summer the evaporation 
from the extensive plain below, almost wholly 
covered with moss or peat-earth, from the 
neighbourhood of Stirling on the east, to 
Gavtmore on the west, is immense. When 
such days are succeeded by a calm night, the 
vapours that had been evolved are condensed 
by the cold, and form a thick volume of fog, 
or mist, upon the surface of the moss, of twen¬ 
ty or thirty feet in depth, exhibiting in the 
morning the appearance of a vast lake, in- 


42 


terspersed with islands and intersected by 
promontories which occur in the moss, or 
upon its margin. This appearance exhibits a 
picturesque object to the eye, but its effects 
are injurious to vegetation, blighting every 
thing within its reach, particularly gardens 
and orchards. 

This moss, extending for near sixteen miles 
in length, by three or four in breadth, with 
some interruptions, where the carse or clay 
has either been recovered, or had never been 
covered with peat-earth, owes its origin, ac¬ 
cording to the generally received opinion, to 
the destruction of the Caledonian forest, by 
the Roman soldiers, in the time of the Empe¬ 
ror Severus. * This opinion is corroborated 


1 See an ingeniofts paper in the third volume of the 
Edinburgh Phil. Trans, by the late Rev. Christopher Tait 
of Kincardine. 



43 


by the discovery of vast numbers of large 
trees, throughout its whole extent, incumbent 
on the clay, and covered with peat-earth to the 
depths of eight, ten, and eleven feet. When 
the moss is removed, these appear lying in 
all directions, and without any appearance of 
that uniformity of position which a natural 
catastrophe, such as a deluge or storm, might 
have been expected to give them. The roots 
still remain entire beside the stems, with their 
fangs deeply and firmly fixed in the soil. Un¬ 
der the moss, and upon the surface of the 
clay, a Roman road has been traced from 
Touch, on the south-east, to Kincardine, on 
the north-west, formed of the trunks of the 
trees placed lengthways, and their branches 
laid across them. All along the southern 
margin of the moss, little military stations 
occur at short distances from each other. 
They are situated upon commanding emi- 


44 


lienees, and are of a circular form. They are 
frequent in the neighbourhood of Kippen. 
There is a remarkable one below the village. 
The only one which the author observed up¬ 
on the northern side of the moss is to be seen 
on the road side, about a mile to the eastward 
of Rouskie; he is informed, however, that 
there are many others. These, it is probable, 
were erected for the defence of the Roman 
soldiers whilst employed in demolishing the 
forest, against the sudden assaults of the Ca¬ 
ledonians. 

To the late Lord Karnes is due the praise 
of the great and successful exertions, which 
have been made for many years past for reco¬ 
vering the valuable soil below, by removing 
this extensive tract of moss. Under his aus¬ 
pices, the Persian wheel at Blairdrummond 
was erected by Mr George Meikle of Alloa, 
son of the celebrated inventor of the threshing 


45 


machine. This machine is supplied with wa¬ 
ter from the Teith, which it raises to the height 
of eighteen feet; the water is then conveyed in 
a wooden tunnel of eighteen inches in diame¬ 
ter, under ground, to a considerable distance 
in the moss, where it is discharged into a large 
reservoir, whence it is distributed to the occu¬ 
pants of the moss acres according to certain 
established regulations. By the streams fur¬ 
nished from this reservoir, the incumbent 
peat-earth is floated into the Forth. Many 
hundred acres of the richest clay soil have 
been thus recovered, and flourishing villages 
now stand where a goat could scarcely have 
kept his feet. The wheel itself is a picturesque 
object to the traveller; and the moss village 
is highly interesting to every friend to huma¬ 
nity. 

Advancing from Rednock-house, about a 
mile, we reach the lake of Menteith, long ad- 


46 


mired as one of the most beautiful expanses 
of water to be seen in Scotland. It is nearly 
of a circular form, and about five miles in 
circumference. The northern shore is adorn¬ 
ed with several stately oaks, Spanish ches- 
nuts, and plane-trees of ancient growth. The 
plain on which they grow was laid out in 
former times by the Earls of Menteith, the 
proprietors of this district, as a park or lawn, 
though the family lived, according to the 
manners of the period, in one of the islands of 
the lake. On this side, the manse and church, 
together with an elegant cemetery, lately built 
for the Gartmore family, after a design by Mr 
William Stirling, architect at Dunblane, and 
situated on the very verge of the lake, give in¬ 
terest to the scenery of Port of Menteith . 

But the most distinguished ornaments of 
the lake of Menteith, and highly worthy of the 
curiosity of the antiquarian, as well as of the 


47 


mere tourist, are its two islands, decorated 
with the ruins of ancient buildings. 

The larger, and more easterly island, is 
called Inchmahoma. It consists of five acres 
of ground, one half of which was, before the 
Reformation, the property of the church ; the 
other half was occupied as a garden by the 
Earls of Menteith. In this island are still to 
be seen the ruins of a priory founded and en¬ 
dowed by King David I. There is still stand¬ 
ing a great part of the walls, with one arch, 
on the north, in the most elegant style of Go¬ 
thic architecture. The writer of these pages 
recollects to have seen another standing, which 
has tumbled down only within these thirty 
years. The fine window at the east end has 
been built up with small stones, at some pe¬ 
riod posterior to the erection of the priory. 
The west door, which still remains entire, af¬ 
fords a fine specimen of the Gothic; as far as 

6 


4S 


recollection serves, it exactly resembles the 
west door of the abbey church at Paisley. 

There are several trees of ancient and large 
growth upon this island. A number of Spa¬ 
nish chesnuts, which are still in a thriving 
condition, were certainly planted before the 
Reformation. Some of them are seventeen 
feet in circumference, at six feet above the 
ground. 

The whole island is the property of his 
Grace the Duke of Montrose; the one half 
accruing to him with the estate of Menteith, 
to which he succeeded about the period of the 
Revolution, and the other by purchase from 
the family of Cardross, which had obtained 
the church lands; the laird of Cardross, how¬ 
ever, still retaining the dominium of the lake. 

In the smaller island on the south-west, 
stood the dwelling house of the ancient family 
of Graham, Earls of Menteith, now occupy- 


49 


ing 1 its whole surface. In the turbulent pe¬ 
riods of former ages, families of distinction in 
the Highlands studied to have their residence 
in the islands of their numerous lakes, for the 
sake of security against any sudden attack 
from their ferocious neighbours: upon any 
emergency, they could command the naviga¬ 
tion of the lake, by collecting all the boats in 
the island. 


1 The traditionary antiquarians of the place assert that 
this island is considerably diminished by the encroach¬ 
ments (partly artificial) of the lake. 


D 



50 


FROM PORT OF MENTEITH TO 
ABERFOYLE. 

As the traveller leaves the lake of Menteith* 
let him remark a beautiful wooded knoll jut¬ 
ting into the water, upon the left, and cover¬ 
ed with oak coppice to its summit. This is. 
esteemed a favourable station for taking a 
sketch of Inchmahoma. About a mile to the 
eastward of Aberfoyle, at a place called Dou- 
nans, (or the little eminences) there occurs, 
on the left a lusus natures, similar to that of 
the Roman camp at Callander, but less regu¬ 
lar; extensive ridges, from three to nine or 
ten feet in height, shoot out in various direc¬ 
tions, bearing some degree of resemblance to 
a Roman encampment. One might fancy that 
he could trace here the stations of the out- 


51 


posts, and the circumvallations of the Praeto- 
rium. But the whole appearance is unques¬ 
tionably to be ascribed to the workings of the 
Forth, seeking its way to the lake of Men- 
teith, before it had forced its present course 
by Gartmore. 

It may be interesting to the traveller to be 
informed, that the road from Stirling, by 
Blairdrummond, is immediately to be made 
turnpike as far as Port. 


FROM STIRLING, BY KIER AND 
DOUNE. 

On leaving Stirling, by the bridge which 
crosses the Forth, to the north of the town, 
we cross the river Allan, about two miles dis¬ 
tant ; and on ascending the eminence, have a 

fine view of the house and extensive lawn of 
8 


52 


Kier, the seat of James Stirling of Kier, Esq. 
situated upon a rising ground, which com¬ 
mands one of the finest landscapes in Scot¬ 
land ; the great vale, that extends from Gart- 
more on the west, by Stirling and Falkirk 
on the east, with the Firth of Forth, as far as 
the eye can reach, are in immediate prospect. 
It is probable that Kier, (the British Caer , 
or Roman castrum) w T as formerly a Roman 
station. 

On approaching the village of Doune, the 
castle of that name, one of the finest baronial 
ruins in Scotland, constitutes a very promi¬ 
nent object. It is situated upon a peninsula 
formed by the confluence of the water of Ar- 
doch and the Teith, a spot which seems to 
have been designed by nature as a place of 
strength. It is a huge square building, the 
walls of which are forty feet high, and about 
ten feet thick. What remains of the tower is, 


53 


at least, eighty feet high. It is uncertain when 
or by whom it was built; but having been the 
seat of the Earls of Menteith, it is conjectu¬ 
red, with much probability, that it was erect¬ 
ed by that family about the 11th century, and 
previous to the reign of King Robert II. It 
is now the property of the family of Stewart, 
and gives the second title of Lord Doune to 
the ancient house of Moray. It has been, for 
a long while, fast verging into ruin; but the 
dilapidations of time will, it is hoped, be in¬ 
terrupted for a century at least, by the repairs 
which have been lately given to this venerable 
fabric by the present Earl of Moray, with a 
laudable attention to the antiquities of his fa¬ 
mily and of his country. 

Doune castle is rendered still more inte¬ 
resting, by its having been for some time the 
residence of the beautiful and accomplished, 
but unfortunate, Mary Queen of Scots. 


54 


In the year 1745, Doune castle was occu¬ 
pied by Mr Scott’s Gregor Ghlun Dhu , 1 (a 
lineal descendant, by poetical licence, from 
Roderic Dhu,) or rather by our own Gregor, 
laird of Glengyle, who had obtained the rank 
of colonel in the army of Charles. Gregor 
Ghlun Dhu was the nephew of the celebrated 
Robert Macgregor, laird of Craigrostan, (the 
western skirts and shoulder of Benlomond,) 
better known by the name of Rob Roy. 
Glim Dhu, having on that occasion, raised 200 
of his clan in the cause of Charles, passed 
through Aberfoyle, with his soldiers, on his 
way to the low country, upon a Sunday. He 
halted, for the refreshment of his men, upon 
the green, at the bridge which crosses the 
Forth, near the inn of Aberfoyle. It is ho- 


1 See Note II. to Canto IV. of the Lady of the Lake. 



55 


ped, that, at this time of day, when the an¬ 
cient house of Stuart, a portion of whose 
blood still flows in the veins of so many royal 
and noble families in Europe, is extinct, it 
will not be deemed a detraction from the loy¬ 
alty of this district to relate, that, on that day, 
the young ladies of the neighbourhood were 
seen occupied on the green of Aberfoyle, in 
furnishing cockades for the bonnets of Glen- 
gyle’s officers and men. The truth is, that in 
such feelings and in such attachments, the pre¬ 
sent reigning family have, at this day, the su¬ 
rest pledge of the unshaken loyalty of High¬ 
landers. 

In detailing the characteristic features of a 
period and state of society, which claim so 
much interest in the history of this country, 
it may not be considered as foreign, to notice 
an instance of firmness of nerve, and deter¬ 
mination of purpose, which occurred on that 


56 


same Sunday, in the neighbourhood. The 
]ate reverend Duncan Macfarlane, minister of 
Drymen, was officiating at Chapelaroch, an 
outskirt of his parish, about four miles distant 
from Aberfoyle. It is well known, that the 
name Macgregor was at that period proscri¬ 
bed ; and that every clergyman of the church 
of Scotland was prohibited, under severe pe¬ 
nalties, to baptize by the name of Gregor . It 
happened, on that Sunday one of the clan 
presented a child to Mr Macfarlane for bap¬ 
tism, by the interdicted name of Gregor, pro¬ 
bably flattering himself, that at a time when 
it was well known the chieftain was in the vici¬ 
nity with his power, the minister would not 
venture to refuse his request. Mr Macfar¬ 
lane, however, spurning the idea of intimida¬ 
tion, was inflexible; and the clansman of Gre¬ 
gor Glundhu was obliged to substitute ano¬ 
ther name. 


57 


It was during the period that Glundhu oc¬ 
cupied Doune Castle, that a party of students 
of the university of Edinburgh, who had arm¬ 
ed themselves in the royal cause, having been 
taken prisoners, were confined in that strong¬ 
hold. Of their number, the celebrated John 
Home, author of the tragedy of Douglas, was 
one: in his history of the events of 1745 he 
gives a very interesting account of their es¬ 
cape. 

Though Mr Scott, in observance of the Ho- 
ratian rule, 

■ - - ad eventum festinat; et in medias ves 

Non secus ac notas, auditorem rapit ; 1 


1 Hor. de art poet v. 148 . —Thus translated by Dr 
Francis:— 

But to the grand event he speeds his course, 

“ And bears his readers with impetuous force, 

“ Into the midst of things.” 



58 


it seems to be unquestionable, that the Knight 
of Snowdon and his retinue, had slept at 
Doune Castle on the night previous to the 
Chase; else 

“ The deep-mouthed blood hound’s heavy bay” 
had not 

“ Resounded up the rocky way, 

——“ When the sun his beacon red 

“ Had kindled on Benvoirlich’s head.” 

We henceforth accompany the chivalrous 
Fitz-James, with little interruption, through 
the remainder of his course, whilst, 

- u With Lord Moray’s train, 

u He chased a stalwart stag in vain.”—C anto I. 

At a little distance to the west of Doune 
village, we leave Cambuswallace on the right. 


59 


This beautiful seat has now obtained the name 
of Doune Lodge, having been a favourite re¬ 
sidence of the present Earl of Moray, whilst 
Lord Doune; and enlarged and ornamented 
by him in a very distinguished style of ele¬ 
gance. 

Proceeding along the northern banks of the 
Teith, which runs with a clear and rapid cur¬ 
rent over beds of rock, and interrupted from 
time to time with large insulated stones, we 
leave, on the left, and on the southern banks 
of the river, Lanrick Castle, the magnificent 
seat of Sir John Macgregor Murray of Lan¬ 
rick and Balquihidder, Bart. The castle is 
an elegant modern structure, and its environs, 
highly favoured by nature, are laid out beau¬ 
tifully in lawns and walks, and thriving plan¬ 
tations. The river, just under the windows of 
the castle, is very fine; tumbling over succes¬ 
sive ledges of rocks, it forms a series of small 


60 


cataracts, or breaks of water, which boil mur¬ 
muring along. 

Advancing within about two miles of Cal¬ 
lander, we have Cambusmore, the seat of John 
Buchanan, Esq. upon the left, embosomed in 
plantations, with an extensive lawn in front, 
through which winds the Keltie, a large moun¬ 
tain stream that falls into the Teith from the 
north. 

Before we proceed farther by this route, it 
may not be uninteresting to notice, that it ap¬ 
pears probable, that the author of the Lady 
of the Lake first imbibed his taste for the sub¬ 
lime scenery of the Highlands, which he has 
so felicitously pourtrayed, in the vicinity of 
the spot where we now stand. It is said, that 
in his juvenile days, he delighted to pass some 
months, for several summers, at the houses of 
Newton and Cambusmore. Here, on the out¬ 
skirts of Benvorlich and Ua-var, with Benledi 


61 


full in his eye on the west, and within an easy 
ride of the wonders of Loch Katrine, he might 
have satiated his poetic imagination with the 
sublime, in external nature; and with the he¬ 
roic, in the study of ancient Celtic character. 
We are all the creatures of circumstance. 
What elevation of sentiment, or originality of 
genius, can be looked for in him who has 
passed those days in which the fancy is young, 
and every faculty of the mind is vivid, in 
some darksome alley, or even amidst the tame 
scenery of a monotonous plain. When Ho¬ 
race says, 

“ Doctrina sed vim promovet insitam,” 1 

he surely means, that, even to the best formed 
minds, a certain discipline, and certain op- 


1 Carm. L. IV. Ode IV. 



62 


portunities of development are necessary, in 
order to produce that perfection of which they 
are capable. 

We pass on to the village of Callander, 
through thriving woods and plantations, Ben- 
ledi, in all its grandeur, with the adjacent 
scenery, swelling at every step upon the view. 
Near the east end of the village, the Roman 
Camp, a neat and elegant seat, on the pro¬ 
perty of the Hon. Mr Burrell, is passed upon 
the left; it has obtained its name from a beau¬ 
tiful lusus natures, somewhat resembling the 
lines of a Roman encampment, which is to 
be seen there, formed unquestionably by the 
workings of the river, before it had found its* 
bed. 


6S 


CALLANDER. 

The situation of the village of Callander, 
together with the whole of the surrounding 
scenery, is uncommonly beautiful and pictu¬ 
resque. The village is neat, clean, and well 
built, most of the houses being covered with 
slate, which is found in the neighbourhood. 
The laird of Macnab, some years ago, built an 
inn upon his grounds, at the west end of the 
village, in a style of elegance and comfort not 
often to be met with in the Highlands of Scot¬ 
land. 

At Callander, the river first assumes the 
name of Teith, or Teath. It is formed by two 
branches, which unite their streams a little 
above the village; the more northerly issuing. 





64 


as has been stated, from Lochvoil, in Bal- 
quihidder, by Lochlubnaig, and the pass of 
Leney; and the more southerly, from Loch 
Katrine, by Loch Achray and Loch Ven- 
nachar; these branches receiving their deno¬ 
minations from the lakes from which they re¬ 
spectively issue. 

Of the Teith, the Avon Tha'ich of the High¬ 
landers, the etymology is uncertain; some 
have said that it is derived from Teth , or Te> 
hot , from the boiling appearance which it al¬ 
most uniformly presents, on account of the 
rapidity of its current, from Callander to Och- 
tertyre. The fall of the river throughout thi& 
course, is probably not less than 150 feet. It 
may be proper to remark, that the name Men - 
teith , by which the whole territory included be¬ 
tween the Forth and the Teith, from their 
junction, a little above Stirling, to the west- 


65 


ern extremity of Lochcon, upon the confines 
of Buchanan, is denominated, is entirely un-^ 
known in the Gaelic: the district is uniformly 
called Taich . 

The tourist will find ample occupation, for 
one day at least, in examining and in admi¬ 
ring the interesting objects which occur in the 
immediate neighbourhood of Callander. 

If he wishes to begin by taking a general 
view of this delightful scenery, perhaps the 
most favourable situation that he can select is 
to be found at, or near, the beautiful villa of Mr 
Menzies, chamberlain to his Grace the Duke 
of Montrcse. Besides the internal- beauty of 
this romantic spot, situated upon the southern 
banks of the Teith, and finely diversified with 
walks, and shrubs, and trees, we have, from 
the upper windows, the following prospect: 

Directing the eye westward, with a little 
inclination towards the north, we have in the 

E 


66 


foreground the river, formed by the junction 
of the Vennachar and Lubnaig, meandering, 
with gentle current, through the vale of Leney 
and Bochastle. Over this river, just under 
the eye, a handsome bridge of three arches is 
thrown, which gives variety to the picture. 

On the right hand, the lofty Craig of Cal¬ 
lander, rising in alternate ledges, partly co¬ 
vered with wood, and partly exhibiting the 
bare rock, with the lower outskirts of the lux¬ 
uriant woods of Leney, are seen. But how 
is the magnificence of the back-ground—the 
rich verdure of the Carchonzie woods upon 
the left, the hanging groves of the pass of 
Leney upon the right, and above all, the ma¬ 
jestic Benledi before the eye, with his summit 
often enveloped in clouds, to be delineated in 
words ? It is certain that, without actual ob¬ 
servation, or at least the substitute of accurate 
drawings, nothing impresses itself upon the 


67 


mind more faintly than verbal descriptions of 
landscape. The writer, with a very vivid idea 
fixed in his own imagination of the particu¬ 
lars of a scene which had engaged his feelings, 
and with which he is even most intimately ac* 
quainted, may labour, with much expence of 
words and of imagery, to convey his ideas to 
others; but without drawings, or actual ob¬ 
servation, it will be found that the principal 
effect of such a description tends only to at¬ 
tract the stranger to the objects, and not to 
afford any previous adequate notion of them. 

If, after having satiated his mind with the 
contemplation of the sublime, the tourist wishes 
to repose by dwelling on the beautiful, let 
him, from the same station, direct his eye 
eastward by the course of the river; the village 
of Callander, with its church and spire, the 
river itself, now occupying a wide bed, and its 
banks fringed with aged trees, the minister’s 


manse, and the plantations of the Roman 
Camp terminating the prospect, combine to 
furnish a very pleasing picture. 

The bridge of Bracklinn, (the speckled or 
white-foaming pool,) situated about a mile up 
the hill, to the north-east of the village, is 
highly deserving of the notice of the traveller. 
Here a narrow Alpine bridge, without either 
a ledge or hand-rail, crosses a profound ra¬ 
vine, through which, at a great depth below, 
a foaming torrent dashes over disjointed masses 
of rock . 1 Local scenery such as this, it is ob- 


1 The author of the Lady of the Lake, in a note to 
the line “ Bracklinn’s thundering wave,” Canto II. 
gives the following just description of this scene, which 
the reader will be pleased to find here transcribed:— 
u This,” says he, “ is a beautiful cascade made at a place 
“ called the bridge of Bracklinn, by a mountain stream 
<{ called the Keltie, about a mile from the village of 
tl Callander of Menteith. Above a chasm, where the 
brook precipitates itself from a height of at least fifty 



69 


served, affords a fine contrast to general views. 
Of the former kind, there is another magni¬ 
ficent specimen, which was much admired by 
Mr Farrington, at the corner of the larch- 
wood, to the east of Callander, on the way to 
Bracklinn. Indeed, the course of the Keltie, 
from the bridge to its junction with the Teith, 
furnishes many interesting examples of such 
scenery. 

Before our tourist leaves Callander, he must 
visit the Pass of Leney, by travelling along 
the northern banks of the rapid river which 
issues from Lochlubnaig. This, like the other 
passes in the Highlands, is a narrow ravine, 
or ghaut, if the term may be used, by which 


<( feet, there is thrown, for the convenience of the 
neighbourhood, a rustic foot-bridge, of about three 
“ feet in breadth, and without ledges, which is scarcely 
w to be crossed by a stranger without awe and appre- 
“ hension.” 



70 


the only practicable communication between 
the lower and the higher districts of the coun¬ 
try is to be had. Leaving Leney house, the 
seat of John Hamilton of Bardowie, Esq. with 
its woods and romantic glen, upon a com¬ 
manding situation on the right; and soon af¬ 
ter having left the little village of Kilmahog, 
we enter the Pass of Leney, richly skirted 
with waving woods, and hemmed in by lofty 
mountains and rugged rocks. Without at¬ 
tempting to describe this scene more minute¬ 
ly, let it suffice to say, that in a series of falls 
of the river, through a declivity of probably 
no less than two hundred feet, joined to the 
grandeur of the surrounding scenery, this pass 
furnishes a feast to the eye that delights in 
sublimity, as well as the ear that can be pleased 
with the cataract’s roar, which is not often to 
be met with, even in the Highlands. 


71 


But the grand and most striking feature in 
the surrounding scenery of Callander is the 
magnificent prospect of Benledi, which pre¬ 
sents itself, bounding the horizon on the N. W. 
This mountain ranks with the first rate Beinns 
of Scotland. Its height is 3009 feet. The 
name Ben-le-di, signifies the Mountain of God . 
It was probably one of the public places of 
worship under the druidical hierarchy, though 
no monuments of that superstition are now to 
be found there: there is, indeed, on the sum¬ 
mit, which is of considerable breadth, a long 
walk of the smoothest turf, evidently formed 
by the hand of man. It is said, that on this 
mountain, in ancient times, the people of the 
adjacent district met on the first day of May, 
to kindle the sacred fire, in honour of the 
sun, the Bel, or Baal, of the Orientals, the 
Belis of the Cisalpine, and the Belenus of Are- 


moric Gaul. * The name may still be traced 
in the Beltein, or first day of May; and some 
remains of the observance of the druidical fes¬ 
tival still exist in a custom not long ago very 
common, and not yet altogether extinct, in 
this quarter, of assembling on that day upon 
the tops of mountains, where a fire is kin¬ 
dled by the young people, and a feast prepa¬ 
red of eggs, and a sacred cake, of which they 
all partake. 

The south-west side of Benledi, like that of 
all our other mountains, is bare and tame. 
The eastern side, which looks towards Cal¬ 
lander, is rugged and picturesque. But the 
northern side, particularly that part ofit which 


* See Gherardus Joan. Vossius de Origine et pro- 
gressu Idololatriae, tom. I. p. 389, together with addi r 
tional illustrations by the author of these pages, in an 
Appendix to his Essay on the Authenticity of Ossian’s 
Poems. 



73 


overhangs Lochlubnaig, exhibits an uncom¬ 
mon style of grandeur. The mountain seems, 
at some distant period, to have been broken 
over at the summit, and, by some convulsion 
of nature, to have tumbled down in enormous 
masses in that direction. 

Along the base of the mountain, on the 
north-east, Lochlubnaig, already mentioned as 
in the route from Balquhidder to Callander, 
stretches its narrow and winding course. 
Lochlubnaig presents the same picture with 
that of the most of our Highland lakes, of a 
sheet of water arrested in a deep ravine, and 
thrown back by obstacles from the lower ex¬ 
tremity. The most interesting view of Loch¬ 
lubnaig, it will probably be granted, is to be 
had from its first opening on the south-east. 
About the middle of the lake, near the side of 
the road, and just opposite to the precipitous 
shoulder of Benledi, stands Ardchullerie, for 


many years the favourite residence of the ce¬ 
lebrated Mr Bruce of Kinnaird. 

The territory that stretches to the north¬ 
west, along the shores of Lochlubnaig, is call¬ 
ed Strathire, and is the utmost boundary to 
which the bloody cross of Roderic Dhu ex¬ 
tended. At the lower end was the chapel of 
St Bridget, or St Bride, where, 

- (i Norman, heir of Armandave,” 

was obliged to resign the hand of Mary of 
Tombea, which had just been plighted to him, 

- “ to grasp the cross of strife- 

an incident which gives a lively interest to 
the Third Canto of Mr Scott’s Poem, and to 
which we owe the affecting song of the bride¬ 
groom. 



Returning to the contemplation of the 
adjacent scenery, it may be permitted to re¬ 
mark, that it appears almost impossible for 
any person whose mind is, even in a slight de¬ 
gree, tinctured with physical science, to ob¬ 
serve these wonderful exhibitions of mountain, 
and lake, and valley, with their very striking 
characters and forms, without feeling some 
desire to investigate the causes which may 
have contributed to such conformations. The 
tastes and pursuits of individuals arc infinite¬ 
ly diversified. Whilst some delight to trace 
the ever-varying features of civil society, others 
are better pleased with the contemplation of 
the more permanent aspect of inanimate na¬ 
ture. To pursue, with BufFon, the courses of 
rivers, or the corresponding angles and pa¬ 
rallelisms of mountains; or to reckon up, with 
Linnaeus, the genealogies of an order of plants, 
are to them enjoyments of a higher relish. 


76 


than to ransack the humiliating detail of the 
inconsistencies, the follies, and the vices of 
mankind. 

Before we proceed, therefore, to visit the 
analogous scenery of the Trosachs, some rea¬ 
ders may be gratified by having their minds 
set to work; and by having a topic suggested 
to them, which, during the remainder of this 
tour, may assist in relieving a vacant mo¬ 
ment at an inn, or whilst seeking shelter from 
a shower, under the projecting shoulder of a 
rock. 


77 


GEOLOGICAL HINTS 

APPLICABLE TO THIS DISTRICT. 


The circumstance that has been stated, of 
the bare and naked aspect which Benledi pre¬ 
sents on the south-west, with the broken rug¬ 
gedness, and chaotic disorder into which its 
north-eastern shoulder is thrown, does not 
appear to be peculiar to that mountain. Mr 
Kirwan, in his Geological Observations,” 
remarks, that this is the character of all the 
mountains of the higher order over the globe. 
Our tourist will see, by and by, that Benvenue 




78 


exhibits precisely the same appearance, of ha¬ 
ving had a great portion of its summit and 
north-eastern side torn away, and thrown 
down in that direction in indescribable con¬ 
fusion ; these broken masses, indeed, he will 
find to constitute the grandest feature of the 
Trosachs. The author can testify, from his 
own observation that Benlomond in Stirling¬ 
shire, Goatfield in Arran, Benvurlich in Perth¬ 
shire, and the loftier mountains in Cowal, pre¬ 
sent a similar aspect. 

With regard to the lower mountains, not 
exceeding 1800 feet, if there occurs any ap¬ 
pearance of abruption towards the north-east, 
it is so inconsiderable as scarcely to deserve 
notice. The south-west side of these moun¬ 
tains is, as before, bare of' soil and scanty in 
vegetation; but the north-eastern side is deep 
of soil, and rich in pasture, as is well known 
to every shepherd in the Plighlands. 


79 


This observation, founded on facts, may 
be extended yet further. The western and 
south-western coast of Scotland, as well as that 
of every maritime region, is, in a great mea¬ 
sure, thin of soil; whilst upon the eastern, 
we have all our deep and alluvial earth. 
Though many large rivers discharge them¬ 
selves into the Atlantic, where is an acre of 
carse-ground of the true character of the 
carses of Stirlingshire, Clackmananshire, and 
Gowrie, to be found in the whole range of 
its Scottish coast ? Sir George Staunton in¬ 
forms us that all the alluvial soil of China is 
to be met with on its north-eastern coast, 
where it occupies a tract of two hundred 
miles. 

These facts naturally excite, and merit the 
attention of inquisitive minds: If the theory 
of the deluge offered by the ingenious Mr 
Kirwan be adopted, all these phenomena may 


80 


be easily explained; and, with the believer in 
Divine Revelation, this theory will find pecu¬ 
liar acceptance, from its entire consistency 
with the Mosaic account of that remarkable 
event. : 

Mr Kirwan’s idea, which may be stated in 
a few words, is, 44 That the Great Pacific 
44 Ocean (the To/m Bohu , or Great Deep of 
66 Scripture,) was, upon that occasion, broken 
44 up, and caused by the immediate interposi- 
44 tion of the Deity, to rush from its south- 
44 westerly bed, over the whole habitable globe, 
44 towards the north-east, till at length it re- 
44 gained its former channel. It rained, at the 
44 same time, for forty days and forty nights 
44 upon the earth, the natural consequence of 
44 that immense evaporation, which must have 
44 taken place from the still increasing volume 
44 of the waters which were poured in upon 

44 a soil previously heated by the rays of the 

3 


81 


w sun.” The necessary effect of these rains 
would also be, to loosen the structure of the 
soil, and, by penetrating into the fissures of 
the rocks and mountains, to render their 
masses less compact, and more liable to ab¬ 
ruption. 

From this simple idea of Mr Kir wan, it 
would seem, that all the phenomena of the 
external structure of the globe may be rea¬ 
dily explained. Let us look around us in a 
territory of unequal surface, such as that of 
the Highlands of Scotland, and we may per¬ 
ceive that, except where a deviation from this 
course of the overwhelming torrent can be 
easily accounted for, by the anomalous direc¬ 
tion of the mountainous chains, the rocks 
and hills are stripped of their soil on the south¬ 
west, whilst they are rich in soil towards the 
north-east. On this last side too, and on this 
only, we meet with primaeval mosses of great 

F 


82 


depth, to the height of 1500 feet above the le¬ 
vel of the sea, as upon the north-east shoul¬ 
der of Benlomond. These mosses consist of an 
accumulation of decayed vegetables, and large 
trees, deeply imbedded, and lying, as the late 
ingenious Dr Walker longago remarked, with 
their roots towards the south-west, and their 
tops in the opposite direction. The inquisitive 
physiologist may see one of these, probably 
antediluvian, trees, lying in that direction, 
in a moss upon the road from the Tro- 
sachs to Aberfoyle, on the left hand, about 
half a mile above the house of Achray. 
Though only about one half of it has been 
exposed to view, in digging peats, it is suffi¬ 
cient to convey some notion of the magnifi¬ 
cence of our vegetable productions, at some 
former period. 

If the kind forbearance of the general read¬ 
er towards the amateur in geology would 


83 


permit, a further elucidation of Mr Kirwan’s 
theory might be shortly added. 

We are informed by Moses, that the pro¬ 
gress of the deluge was slow and gradual. We 
read, that when “ the fountains of the great 
66 deep were broken up, and the windows of 
cc heaven were opened, the waters increased, 
<c and bare up the ark;” 1 we read, v. 18, 
<fi that the waters prevailed, and were increa- 
<c sed greatly;” and at v. 19, “ that they pre- 
“ vailed exceedingly upon the earth, and all 
e( the high hills that were under the whole 
<c heaven were covered.” 

From this same passage of scripture, it ap¬ 
pears, that the whole diluvian process occu¬ 
pied a complete year, before the waters had 
subsided into their ancient bed, and before 


1 Genesis, ch. vii. v. 11. 




84 


even the inland regions of Asia were inha¬ 
bitable. How much longer must have been 
the period that elapsed, before the oscillations 
of this immense body of water, set in motion 
by such a powerful impulse, could have ceased 
on the shores of the great continents; espe¬ 
cially upon the eastern coast of Asia, where 
it began to Regain its former channel. The agi¬ 
tation of the returning waters must have been 
also very great upon the western coast of Ame¬ 
rica ; and the expected effects may actually be 
found in the accounts given of those regions 
by Condamine and Ulloa. 

Let us very briefly trace the diluvian pro¬ 
gress. It had first to surmount that chain of 
lofty mountains which traverses America from 
north to south; upon reaching the borders 
of the Atlantic, according to the well-known 
laws of hydrostatics, a very considerable time 
must have elapsed before the waters of the 


85 


great deep could communicate their motion to 
the waters which they had found at rest. The 
whole volume of adventitious waters must 
have, during this suspense of motion, regur¬ 
gitated upon the continent which it had so 
recently swept in its course. During this 
period of interruption, all the exuviae, both 
animal and vegetable, which the waters had 
carried along with them in their course, 
would have time to subside, and to form the 
alluvial soil of which the eastern coast of Ame¬ 
rica, for near two hundred miles, is known to 
consist. 

The same view may be extended to every 
region of our globe. Even the narrow chan¬ 
nel of the German ocean must have arrested 
the torrent of the great deep , until its motion 
was communicated to it; and, the interrupt¬ 
ed mass of waters, enriched with the spoils 


86 


which it had swept along with it in its pro¬ 
gress, from America, and even from Africa, 
must have deposited, during the period of its 
regurgitation, the exuviae of various cli¬ 
mates and of various soils, but especially the 
earthy particles which it had washed of£ and 
carried along with it, in its course. Hence, 
though not properly belonging to the subject 
of these sketches, the fossil bones of animals 
which are now to be found only within the tro¬ 
pics, are frequently discovered in the north¬ 
ern regions. The elephant and the rhinor- 
ceros certainly never existed, nor could pos¬ 
sibly exist, as our climates are now constitu¬ 
ted, in Siberia and Khamschatka : Where 
are now to be found the vegetables which are 
necessary for their subsistence ? Are not these 
wonderful remains an importation, thus easily 
accounted for, from the regions where those 


87 


animals are at this day indigenous ? 1 Hence, 
too, the vast tract of alluvial soil on the east¬ 
ern coast of China, and even the carses of 


* In a late number of the Edinburgh Review, (not, 
however, now at hand) there is an amusing article on the 
subject of a Treatise by M. Cuvier on Fossil Bones. It 
is justly stated, that the bones of the larger animals are 
found buried in the alluvial soil, upon the banks of rivers, 
and in islands formed at their emboucheures. But a still 
more curious circumstance is brought forward. In cer¬ 
tain caves, in the elevated regions of the mountains of Po¬ 
land and Bohemia, the remains of the lesser animals, 
such as lions, tigers, wolves, deer, hares, &c. are found 
promiscuously heaped together. That these bones were 
thus deposited, as is insinuated, by the gradual succession 
of single pairs of these animals taking shelter, living and 
dying in these caves, can scarcely be maintained. The 
difficulty receives an easy solution, by adopting Mr Kir- 
wan’s theory of the deluge. Whilst the ponderous car¬ 
cases of the elephant, the hippopotamus, and rhinorce- 
ros were swept away at once by the torrent, and sunk 
as soon as it began to regurgitate upon the eastern coast 
of Asia, the more agile animals flying before its approach, 



88 

Stirlingshire, Clackmananshire, and Perth¬ 
shire. 

It has, indeed, been alledged by some phi¬ 
losophers, that all the alluvial soil which oc¬ 
curs upon the eastern coasts of our conti¬ 
nents and islands, has been formed by the 
gradual attrition of running waters, carrying 
down the earthy particles, through successive 
ages, from the mountains, and depositing them 
at the mouths of the rivers i they have main¬ 
tained that the naked aspect which the south¬ 
west side of our mountains presents, is occa¬ 
sioned by the violence and frequency of the 
winds and rains which assail them in that di¬ 
rection; and that the mountains themselves 


sought for safety in the mountains: still, however the 
prevailing rcaiers pursued them, and, even in the recesses 
of these caverns, overwhelmed them in one promiscuous 


rum. 



89 


will be thus, in process of time, washed down 
and carried into the sea. 

No region, it may be remarked, furnishes 
a more complete refutation of this argument 
than that which now lies before us. Let* the 
geologist cast his eye over the vale of Callan¬ 
der, the yale of Aberfoyle, Glenfinglas, or any 
other Highland glen hemmed in by lofty 
mountains, and traversed by mountain streams, 
and he will be enabled to form a just estimate 
of the precise effect of running water in form¬ 
ing the characteristic features of any country. 

The more that we examine nature, the 
more shall we be convinced that this effect is 
not so considerable as it has been represent¬ 
ed. Let us, after the manner of that pro¬ 
found observer, M. de Luc, take a particular 
system of country, the vale which extends from 
Glengyle to Callander, for instance, compre¬ 
hending, through an extent of about twenty- 


90 


two miles, the lakes Katrine, Achray, and 
Vennachar; the whole inclosed by mountains 
from 1000 to 3000 feet in height, pouring 
down innumerable streams and rivulets, which 
all discharge themselves into the Teith. Had 
the immense chasm of which this valley 
consists been occasioned by the attrition of 
the streams that traverse it, the beds of the 
lakes would long ago have been filled up with 
soil, and a quantity of alluvial earth, propor¬ 
tioned to that which had been washed down 
from the mountains, would somewhere be 
found. But there is no reason to believe that 
the lakes have lost any thing in depth ; and, 
excepting in the vale of Callander, not a par¬ 
ticle of alluvial earth is to be found in the 
course of the Teith. 

Neither is there any reason to believe that 
our mountains are losing any thing in their 
height, by the buffetting of storms, and the at- 


91 


trition of water. The fact is, that, in general, 
our mountains have a considerable extent of 
level ground even at their summits, which is 
firmly consolidated, and fixed down with a 
thick matt, formed by the interwoven fibres 
of vegetables. This is, as has been stated, the 
case of Benledi; it is the same with Benlo- 
mond. From these summits nothing can be 
washed off; the sides of those mountains, in¬ 
deed, whose declivity is sudden, may be partly 
stripped of their mould by the streams, but 
those of more gentle ascent will suffer little 
diminution of soil, especially at their summits, 
the nearer to which, as we approach, the ef¬ 
fects of running water will be continually di¬ 
minishing. 


92 


FROM CALLANDER 

TO THE 


TROSACHS. 


The distance from Callander to the opening 
of the Trosachs, by a tolerably good carriage 
road, which passes along the northern banks 
of Loch Yennachar and Loch Achray, is about 
ten miles. We may leave Callander, either 
by the north road, passing through Kilma- 
hog, or by the south, passing through the 
Carchonzie woods. The former is the most 




93 


picturesque, and on that account generally 
preferred. 

Leaving, upon the left, the plain of Bo- 
chastle, where some appearances of entrench¬ 
ments, probably Roman, are still to be seen, 
the cataracts of Carchonzie, formed by the 
river, which, issuing from Loch Vennachar, 
throws itself impetuously over a continued 
ledge of rocks, deserve the attention of the 
stranger. 

We are now arrived 

“ As far as Coilantogle’s ford,” 

-“ Clanalpine’s outmost guard,” 1 

now rendered more convenient to the tra¬ 
veller by a bridge of two arches. It was in this 
immediate vicinity that the Combat took 


* Lady of the Lake, Canto IV, 



94 


place, in which Roderick Dhu sunk under 
the superior arm of Fitz-James. 

Loch Vennachar, * a beautiful expanse of 
Water, of about five miles in length by a mile 
and a half in breadth, now opens upon the 
view. This lake, in its own outline, and in 
the fine skirting of wood which, almost 
throughout, adorns its margin, possesses much 
interest. At Milntown, about a mile and a 
half from the east end of the lake, there is a 
beautiful little cascade facing the south, in 
which (as indeed in all other cascades simi¬ 
larly constituted) the prismatic colours may, 
when the sun shines, be observed from 11 


1 Said, though perhaps on doubtful grounds, to signi¬ 
fy “ The Lake of the Fair Plain.” Where is this fair 
plain ? and in what respect is it better entitled to that 
appellation than any other plain ? 



95 


o’clock, a. m. to one o’clock, p. m. as distinctly 
as in a prism of glass. 

Proceeding westward, we pass through 
Coilltbhroine , or the wood of lamentation, so 
called from its being the scene of a dismal 
disaster which is said to have passed there, 
by the cruel malice of the Kelpie, or river- 
spirit^who is believed to haunt this lake. The 
story is variously related. In the edition 
which Mr Scott appears to have obtained, 
<c a funeral procession, with all its attendants, 
are said to have been destroyed by this malig¬ 
nant daemon.” 1 2 In another legend, it is said, 
“ that, as a number of children were one day 
at play on the border of the lake, a beautiful 
little horse issued forth from it. Such was its 
apparent gentleness, that one of the children, 
after having long admired its beauty, ventured 


1 Lady of the Lake, Canto III, Note V, 

2 



96 


to mount it; another, and another, followed 
his example, till the whole of them had mount¬ 
ed; the creature gradually lengthening his 
back, to admit their numbers as they ad¬ 
vanced ; he then instantly plunged into the 
deep, and devoured them all in his watery 
cave, except one, who, by a singular fortune, 
escaped to tell the tale.” 

Towards the western extremity of the lake, 
on the left hand, lies Lanric mead , the muster- 
place of the Clanalpines, as announced by 
Roderick to his henchman, Malise; 

“ Speed, Malise, speed !” he said, and gave 
“ The croslet to his henchman brave. 

“ The muster-place be Lanric mead,— 

“ Instant the time,—speed, Malise, speed.” * 

The poet could not have made a more judi- 


1 Canto III. St. XII. 



97 


clous choice of his ground, Lanric mead being 
the only centrical level territory in the district. 

About a mile above Loch Vennachar, the 
traveller, as he approaches Brigg of Turk' ar¬ 
rives at the summit of an eminence, where there 
bursts upon his eye a sudden and wide prospect 
of the windings of the river that issues from 
Loch Achray, with that sweet lake itself in 
front; the gently-rolling river pursues its ser¬ 
pentine course through an extensive meadow; 
at the west end of the lake, on the side of Aber- 
foyle, the property of his Grace the Duke of 
Montrose, is situated the delightful farm of 
Achray, the level field, a denomination justly 


1 The Bridge , or Brigg , where a wild boar, who had 
done much mischief in the neigbourhood, is said to have 
been slain. In this, as in most other instances, Mr Scott’s 
orthography is adopted, as it may be the most acceptable 
to the reader, and as being unquestionably founded on 
good taste. 

G 



98 


due to it, when considered in contrast with the 
rugged rocks and mountains which surround 
it. From this eminence are to be seen also, 
on the right hand, the entrance to Glenfinglas; 
and in the distance, Benvenue, whose north¬ 
ern shoulder begins to excite interest by its 
wooded honours, and its bold and varied out¬ 
line. Notwithstanding the height of the ob¬ 
server’s position at this place, the Trosachs 
still remain concealed from his view by the 
bold shore of Loch Achray, on the north. 
An uninterrupted wood, 1 extending far up 
the mountain, and skirting the lake through 
its whole length, with the road winding along 
its border, is finely contrasted with the south¬ 
ern bank, which is bare and heathy. 


1 «<r?r£T 0 j vAjj.— HoM. 



99 


GLENFINGLAS. 

From Brigg of Turk, to the right, strikes 
off the road that leads to Glenfinglas, a 
beautiful little vale, which seems, in all its fea¬ 
tures, to afford the most characteristic idea of 
the scenery which Ossian so often describes. 
A deviation of about a mile from his course, in 
that direction, will well reward the tourist. He 
passes through a confined ravine, with a large 
mountain-stream upon the left, dashing over 
rugged rocks, and fringed here and there with 
coppice wood. This cataract, with the adja¬ 
cent cliffs, are so exquisitely described by Mr 
Scott, both in the text, and in a note, that it 
is hoped the reader will be pleased to find 
them subjoined. It was here that Brian, 
wrapt up in the bull’s hide, performed the 


100 


taghairm, or mysterious consultation of the 
oracle, concerning the fate of Roderick’s war¬ 
like expedition :* 

** The bull was slain; his reeking hide 
They stretched the cataract beside. 

Whose waters their wild tumult toss 
Adown the black and craggy boss 
Of that huge cliff, whose ample verge 
Tradition calls the hero’s targe.” 1 

Upon entering Glenfinglas, through this 
narrow and rugged defile, we are surprised to 
meet with a soft and verdant plain of consider- 


* Canto IV. St. V. 

2 Mr Scott adds a well-known tradition in his note, 
that “ this wild place is said, in former times, to have 
“ afforded refuge to an outlaw, who was supplied with 
“ provisions by a woman, who lowered them down from 
“ the precipice above. His water he procured for him- 
u self, by letting down a flaggon tied to a string into the 
ic black pool beneath the fall.” 

6 



101 


able extent, variegated with meadows and 
corn fields; and affording a fine confirmation 
of the preceding Geological Hints . The moun¬ 
tains of Glenfinglas are lofty, and the streams 
that trickle down their sides are innumerable. 
But the precise effect of these streams has only 
been to give a stratum of alluvial earth, of 
from one to three feet in depth, to the sub¬ 
jacent valley: there is no reason to believe 
that what has been washed down, beyond the 
pass has had any further effect than the for¬ 
mation of a few alluvial acres below Brigg of 
Turk. 

The mountains by which this romantic vale 
is hemmed in are almost quite free from heath, 
not very rocky, and covered to the summit 
with a rich sward, forming pasture ground of 
a superior quality. Glenfinglas was ancient¬ 
ly the deer forest of the Kings of Scotland; 
it appears to have been formerly well wooded, 


102 


the remains of aged trees every where pre¬ 
senting themselves. If the tourist wishes to 
have a complete idea of an Ossianic desart, 
let him travel from this vale to Balquhidder 
through Glen-main; he will meet with a tract 
of mountain glen of about ten miles, destitute 
of the smallest symptom of habitation or of 
cultivation. 

Glenfinglas is the property of the Earl of 
Moray: it has been possessed for time imme¬ 
morial by tenants of his own clan, Stewarts, 
who, living in this sequestered situation, in a 
sort of rural village, are connected with one 
another by intermarriages ,* and, passing their 
days in ease and comfort, furnish one of the 
finest examples of patriarchal felicity that oc¬ 
curs in these times. 

The ingenious author of the Monk, in his 
Tales of Wonder , gives us a very pretty poem, 
entitled Glenfinglas , founded on a legendary 


103 


tale still current thereabouts, to which the 
reader is referred. 

Returning from Glenfinglas, we cross the 
water of Finglas by a neat bridge of one arch; 
and, leaving the river and waving woods of 
Bridge of Michael upon the left, proceed 
along the margin of the lovely Loch Achray . 1 
Thus, advancing 


1 Mr Scott, on the occasion of the warlike prepara¬ 
tions of Roderick, thus beautifully alludes to the scenery 
of Loch Achray :— 

“ So swept the tumult and affray, 

Along the margin of Achray. 

Alas ! thou lovely lake, that e’er 
Thy banks should echo sounds of fear ! 

The rocks, the bosky thickets sleep 
So stilly on thy bosom deep, 

The larks blithe carol from the cloud. 

Seems for the scene too gaily loud.” 

Canto III. St. 14. 



104 * 


-“ Up the margin of the lake. 

Between the precipice and brake,” * 

the Trosachs, at every step, open with increa¬ 
sing magnificence upon the view. 

ARDCEAN-CHROCKAN. 

Before he enters upon the Trosachs, how¬ 
ever, let the stranger attend for a few minutes 
to the beautiful little farm of Ardcean-Chrock- 
an, which bounds their eastern extremity. 
Though this harsh-sounding name, like that 
of Horace's town, “ quod non dicere versu est” 
could not be compelled into Mr Scott's har¬ 
monious rhyme, it surely may be permitted 
to celebrate its beauty in humble prose. Its 
fine southern exposure, its fields and mea¬ 
dows gently sloping towards the lake, with all 
its groves and cottages, irresistibly attract the 


105 


notice of every traveller; and there are, per¬ 
haps, few who have not, in passing, formed 
the wish of having a summer's residence of a 
few weeks at this spot, for the purpose of ru¬ 
ral sports, or of landscape drawing. 

Here the stranger, who requires a guide, 
will meet with a very intelligent and obliging 
person, James Stewart, whose principal occu¬ 
pation, during the summer, is to act as the 
Cicerone of the Trosachs. He keeps boats 
upon Loch Katrine, and servants in readi¬ 
ness to attend. Had he, according to advice 
frequently administered to him, built an inn 
some years ago at Ardcean-Chrockan for the 
accommodation of travellers, he would have 
found his own account in it, whilst he obliged 
the public. Besides innumerable tourists who 
visit the Trosachs on foot and on horse-back 
by the way of Aberfoyle, near 200 carriages of 
all kinds, crowded with company, pass this 


106 


way every season. In 1810, the principal inn 
at Callander was visited, in one day, by twen¬ 
ty-two coaches and chaises, on their way to 
Loch Katrine. 

The truth is, that with all the feast of mind 
and eye which this scenery affords, the fati¬ 
gued traveller will find occasion to desiderate 
refreshments of a more substantial nature. 
To survey the Trosachs with comfort, either 
by the route of Callander or Aberfoyle, is, at 
least, the work of a whole day; and were ac¬ 
commodations to be had upon the spot, ma¬ 
ny would be disposed to lounge and to study 
there for several days together. 1 Draughts¬ 
men particularly, and amateurs in natural 
history, for which this district furnishes so 

1 “ I could find studies here,” said Mr Farrington, 
'* for a month!” A London artist has actually resided 
at Ardcean-chrockan during the whole winter of 1811, 
occupied in delineating this scenery. 



107 


fine a field, find much inconvenience in seek¬ 
ing lodgings at the distance of ten, or even of 
five miles, by which the best part of the day 
is consumed before they can enter upon the 
scene of their operations. At present the vi¬ 
sitant of the Trosachs is obliged to snatch his 
hurried meal, which he has carried along 
with him from Aberfoyle or Callander, upon 
the shores of Lock Katrine, or in the gloomy 
recesses of Coir-nan-Uriskin. Some years 
ago, indeed, Lady Perth built two wicker huts 
on the banks of the lake, thatched with fern, 
and furnished with seats, in the rustic style, 
in which the wearied stranger has frequently 
found shelter and repose. These huts, how¬ 
ever, have long ago fallen into ruin $ but it is 
hoped that the present honourable proprietor 
will soon contribute to the accommodation of 
the public, in this respect, in a still more li¬ 
beral style. 


108 


THE TROSACHS.* 

Immediately upon leaving Loch Achray, 
you enter the magnificent amphitheatre which 
forms the first opening of the Trosachs. The 
remark which has been formerly made con¬ 
cerning the evanescent effect of verbal de¬ 
scriptions of scenery, will excuse from enter¬ 
ing into a minute detail of the wonders of this 
place,—it is indeed a scene which baffles all 
description. To be known it must be seen; 
and to see all that should be seen here, the 
traveller must proceed more than three miles 


1 The term Trosachs signifies the rough or bristled ter¬ 
ritory ; or, to use a term of Mr Scott's, a “ wildering” 
scene of mountains, rocks, and woods, thrown together 
in disorderly groups. 



109 


to the uorth-west, nor will the toil appear irk¬ 
some. 

Instead, therefore, of attempting the hope¬ 
less office of a describer, let it suffice to direct 
the observation of the tourist to such objects 
as seem chiefly to demand his attention in this 
interesting scene. 

Upon entering the Trosachs, let him ob¬ 
serve, upon the right hand, the lofty moun¬ 
tain* richly clothed to a great height with wa¬ 
ving woods ; let him observe the picturesque 
disposition into which Nature has thrown 
the birches and the oaks which adorn the pro¬ 
jecting cliffs, the elegant grouping of the trees, 
with their diversified figure and forms. Some 
aged weeping birches in the crevices of the 
rocks will attract his eye; Ben-venue, towering 
upon the left, and Ben-an upon the right, at 
every step present different pictures. When 
he enters the dark and narrow defile which 


110 


opens at its further extremity upon Loch 
Katrine, whilst he admires again the beauti¬ 
ful disposition of the birches, the hawthorns, 
the hazels, the oaks, and mountain-ashes, let 
him remark an echo produced by the concave 
rock on the left, which, though too near to 
repeat many syllables, is extremely distinct 
and loud. 

It was in this “ rugged dell” that Fitz- 
James’ gallant grey “ exhausted fell .” 1 The 
description of this incident, and indeed of the 
whole scenery here, is so lively, and at the 
same time so just, that in passing along we are 
almost tempted to look for the blanched bones 
of the generous steed. 

O 


1 Lady of the Lake, Canto I. St. 9, 10, 11, 12, &c. 



Ill 


LOCH KATRINE. 


Immediately on entering upon Loch Ka¬ 
trine , 1 let the stranger attend to the magnifi- 


1 Here, as in most other instances, for reasons already 
suggested, Mr Scott’s spelling is adopted. The natives, 
however, uniformly pronounce the name Ketturn or 
Ketturrin , the latter part of the term bearing a near re¬ 
semblance to the names of many other places in the 
Highlands, whose appearance is considered as rude and 
savage. Thus, in Inverness-shire, we have Lochurn or 
Loch-urrin , signifying the lake of hell; and in Cowal, 
Glen-urrin, or hell’s glen. The term Urrin , hell, is a 
corruption, as Dr Smith remarks in a note to his Sean - 
dana of Ifreoine , the cold island of Fingal, the Celtic 
place of torment. The natives of the Highlands per¬ 
ceive no beauty in such scenery as the Trosachs exhi¬ 
bit, and they frequently express their surprise at the con¬ 
course of admiring strangers who repair thither every 
season. To enjoy such scenery, the cultivation of taste 
appears to be requisite. 



112 


cence of those masses in which Ben-venue on 
the left hand appears to tumble in upon the 
view : there can scarcely be any thing more 
sublime. 

The first appearance of the lake itself gives 
little promise of the wide and varied expanse 
to which it stretches out as we proceed. Mr 
Scott has well described it as 

“ A narrow inlet still and deep, 

Affording scarce such breadth of brim 
As Served the wild duck’s brood to swim.” 1 

Advancing by the side of the lake, we pass 
along a road, cut out with immense labour, in 
a solid rock, which overhangs a deep and black 
abyss: before this road was cut out the na¬ 
tives clambered along the face of the precipice 


Canto I. fit. 13. 



113 


by the help of the roots and branches of trees, 
as their only security against a watery grave. 

From this station Mr Farrington took his 
first view in the Trosachs, looking eastward 
through the dark and narrow defile. He re¬ 
marked that “ the picture resembled the 
views which are given of the scenery of New 
South Wales. ,, Passing on by the declivity, 
and taking his station about the middle of the 
beautiful expanse of water into which the lake 
now extends itself, he delineated another in¬ 
teresting scene. He had Ben-venue in full 
prospect in the distance, with its lower out¬ 
skirts rich in pastures, and sprinkled with 
aged trees ; its higher region clothed for two- 
thirds of its height with waving birches, and 
its sides furrowed from the summit to the bot¬ 
tom with innumerable channels, formed by 
the winter’s torrents, but at that time, for the 
most part, dry. In the fore-ground he had a 


H 


114* 


beautiful sheet of water, of more than a mile 
in breadth, bounded on every side by heaths, 
and rocks, and mountains. 

As we advance by the road along the 
lake, we lose it for a few minutes only to en¬ 
joy it again opening with increasing gran¬ 
deur, and presenting new and picturesque 
views of Ben-venue upon the left. We soon 
reach the pebbly beach, opposite to the island 
where the fair Ellen, shooting in her “ little 
skiff” to the bay, 

“ That round the promontory steep 
Led its deep line in graceful sweep,” 

had her first interview with the Knight of 
Snowdon. 

To enjoy this scenery in its full extent, the 
traveller should proceed to the square rock 
which projects its bluff head over the broadest 
part of the lake, about a mile below the farm 


115 


houses of Brenchoil :* there the view to the 
south is truly magnificent. More than six 
miles of water in length by two in breadth 
are under the eye *, the remaining four miles 
to which the lake extends being lost in a turn 
amongst the mountains to the right. The 
lofty mountains of Arroquhar terminate the 
prospect to the west. 


ROUTE ACROSS LOCH KATRINE. 

Having thus conducted the tourist by the 
road that winds along the margin of the lake 
to the utmost verge of the Trosachs, it be¬ 
comes necessary to suggest that the more or¬ 
dinary, and, it will be allowed, the most enter- 


1 The Brianchoil of Mr Scott, a name well suited to 
the birth-place of his exorcist Brian. 



116 


taining route is, to go by water from the 
opening of Loch Katrine to the opposite side; 
and, after having surveyed Coir-nan Uriskin, 
to sail northward by the eastern side of El¬ 
len’s Isle , and landing on the Beach of Inter¬ 
view, to walk down to the place of embarka¬ 
tion. Before entering, however, on the ac¬ 
count of the fascinating scenery which this 
route presents, it may be proper, in a few 
words, to offer some general remarks on the 
district now under our view. 

Loch Katrine, and the river which flows 
from it into Loch Achray, with Loch Achray 
itself, and the river which it sends into Loch 
Vennachar, form the boundary between the 
parishes of Aberfoyle, upon the south, and 
Callander, upon the north, the whole south¬ 
ern district being the property of his grace 
the Duke of Montrose, and the northern of 
the Honourable Mr Burrell Drummond, the 


117 


Earl of Moray, and Sir Patrick Murray, Ba¬ 
ronet. 

Of all the picturesque objects which attract 
notice in this district, Ben-an, or Binnan, on 
the Perth estate, and Ben-venue on that of the 
Duke of Montrose, are the most conspicuous; 
and indeed without them this scenery would 
possess comparatively little interest. 


BEN-AN, OR BINNAN. 

The name is a diminutive of Beinn , the 
term applied to the first order of mountains. 
Ben-an, however, may be estimated at about 
1800 feet in height. It towers high above the 
rugged precipices of the Trosachs on the 
north : For four or five hundred feet from the 
summit it is perfectly pyramidal, and so steep 
on the south side as to preclude all access: it 


118 


is accessible from the north. Its conical sum¬ 
mit and great height seem to render it pecu¬ 
liarly liable to the attraction of lightening. 
James Stewart states, that after a violent thun¬ 
der storm, which occurred in August about five 
years ago, he observed the rock on the sum¬ 
mit of Binnan torn up by the lightening in 
furrows of a zig-zag direction, to the depth of 
several inches. In autumn 1811, during a 
very heavy rain, an avalanche, torn from its 
southern side, and near its summit, carried 
down an immense mass of stones and earth, 
with a noise like thunder: the path of its cur¬ 
rent may be easily traced from the road. 


119 


BEN-VENUE . 1 

Ben- venue in Aberfoyle is, perhaps, one of 
the most picturesque mountains in Britain. 
Its height is about 2800 feet. On the north, 
(the aspect of the mountain which now pre¬ 
sents itself,) besides the immense masses of 
rock which appear in this and in all other 
mountains, to have been, by some convulsion 
of nature, torn from the summit, the whole 
slope is covered for two-thirds upwards with 
alders, birches, and mountain-ashes, of an¬ 
cient growth, and sprinkled over the surface 
with a grace and beauty unattainable by the 


1 Ben-venue signifies the small mountain, from its re¬ 
lative size, compared with Ben-led,i, immediately on the 
N. E. and Ben-lomond on S. W. 



120 


hand of Art. At the first opening of Loch 
Katrine especially, and for a considerable way 
along the lake, the shoulder of Ben-venue, 
stretching northward in abrupt masses to¬ 
wards the shore, presents a sloping ridge, ele¬ 
gantly feathered with birches, in a style which 
the pencil may, in some degree, exhibit, but 
which verbal description cannot easily repre¬ 
sent. 

The inspiration of the muse, however, has 
overcome this difficulty: 

“ High on the south, huge Ben-venue 
Down to the lake his masses threw, 

Crags, knolls, and mounds, confusedly hurled, 

The fragments of an earlier world; 

A wildering forest feathered o’er 
His ruined sides and summit hoar; 

While on the north, through middle air, 

Ben-an heaved high his forehead bare.” 1 


Lady of the Lake, Canto I. St. 14. 



121 


COIR-NAN-URISKIN. 

Ben-venue is rendered venerable in the su¬ 
perstition of the Highlanders, by the celebra¬ 
ted Coir-nan-Uriskin, (the cave, or recess, of 
goblins,) situated near the base of the moun¬ 
tains on its northern shoulder, and overhang¬ 
ing the lake in solemn grandeur. The repu¬ 
ted occupants of this cave, the Lhisks , were 
a sort of lubbary supernaturals, who, like the 
brownies of England, could be gained over 
by kind attentions to perform the drudgery of 
the farm ; and it was believed that many fa¬ 
milies in the Highlands had one of the order 
attached to it. 

Mr Scott appears to have been misinform¬ 
ed, when, in Note XIV. to Canto III. of the 
Lady of the Lake, he assimilates the Urisk 


122 


of the Highlanders to the Grecian satyr, as 
being “ a figure between a goat and a man.” 
We ascribe the human figure alone, however 
wild and uncouth, to these imaginary beings. 
Our idea of them, and of their office, is pre¬ 
cisely that of Milton in his L’Allegro: 

-“ The drudging goblin swet 

To earn his cream bowl duly set, 

When in one night, ere glimpse of morn, 

His shadowy flail hath thrash’d the corn 
That ten day-labourers could not end: 

Then lies him down, the lubbar fiend; 

And, stretched out all the chimney’s length. 

Basks at the fire his hairy strength; 

And crop full, out of doors he flings, 

Ere the first cock his matin sings.” 

• 

Thus it was here also, that his bowl of cream, 
with an oaten cake, was regularly set down 
for the family Urisk, and clothes were occa¬ 
sionally added. The Urisk of Glaschoi/, a 
small farm about a mile to the west of Ben- 



123 


venue, having, as it is said, been neglected one 
night in these attentions, performed indeed 
his task, but was heard about day-break to 
utter a horrible shriek, and took his departure, 
never to return. 

The Urisks were supposed to be dispersed 
over the Highlands, each residing in his own 
wild recess; but the solemn stated assemblies 
of the order (whether annual, or more fre¬ 
quent, is not said) were regularly held in this 
cave of Ben-venue. This current superstition, 
it may be permitted to add, probably alludes 
to some circumstance connected with the an¬ 
cient history of the country : perhaps, like the 
popular superstition of the Daoine Shi , the 
men of peace, or fairies, it may have origina¬ 
ted in the abolition and proscription of the 
druidical order under the Fingallian dynas¬ 
ty,— a theory to be illustrated more fully in 
the sequel. 


124 


The alpine scenery of Ben-venue has of late 
years, and justly, become the primary object 
of the tourist’s curiosity in this quarter, and it 
has now obtained additional interest from the 
poetry of Mr Scott. Here an endless variety 
of objects, equally beautiful and sublime, con¬ 
tinually present themselves; the bold project¬ 
ing promontory, the abrupt precipice over¬ 
hanging the dark abyss, the shaded glade, 
and murmuring stream, every where meet the 
eye. 

After landing on the skirts of Ben-venue, 
we reach the cave (or, more properly, the cove) 
of the goblins, by a steep and narrow defile of 
a few hundred yards in length, in which 

“ No murmur wakes the solemn still, 

Save tinkling of a fountain rill.” 

To attempt to pourtray the gloomy grandeur 
of Coir-nan- Uriskin would be presumptuous, 


125 


after the most beautiful and faithfully just 
picture which has been given of it by our 
poet . 1 Let it suffice to say, that it is a deep 


1 “ It was a wild and strange retreat, 

As e’er was trod by outlaw’s feet. 

The dell, upon the mountain’s crest. 
Yawned like a gash on warrior’s breast; 
Its trench had staid full many a rock, 
Hurled by primaeval earthquake shock 
From Ben-venue’s grey summit wild, 
And here, in random ruin piled, 

They frowned incumbent o’er the spot, 
And formed the rugged sylvan grot. 

The oak and birch, with mingled shade, 
At noontide there a twilight made, 
Unless when short and sudden shone 
Some straggling beam on cliff or stone, 
With such a glimpse as prophet’s eye 
Gains on thy depth, Futurity. 

No murmur waked the solemn still, 

Save tinkling of a fountain rill; 

But when the wind chafed with the lake, 
A sullen sound would upward break, 



126 


circular amphitheatre of at least 600 yards of 
extent in its upper diameter, gradually nar¬ 
rowing towards the base, hemmed in all 
round by steep and towering rocks, and ren¬ 
dered impenetrable to the rays of the sun by 
a close covert of luxuriant trees. On the 
south and west it is bounded by the preci- 


With dashing hollow voice, that spoke 
The incessant war of wave and rock. 

Suspended cliffs, with hideous sway. 

Seemed nodding o’er the cavern grey. 

From such a den the wolf had sprung, 

In such the wild cat leaves her young j 
Yet Douglas and his daughter fair 
Sought for a space their safety there. 

Grey Superstition’s whisper dread 
Debarred the spot to vulgar tread ; 

For there, she said, did fays resort. 

And satyrs hold their sylvan court. 

By moon light tread their mystic maze. 

And blast the rash beholder’s gaze.” 

Lady of the Lake , Canto III. St. 26 . 


5 



127 


pitous shoulder of Ben-venue, to the height 
of at least 500 feet: and it is worth while to 
remark, that towards the east the rock ap¬ 
pears at some former period to have tumbled 
down, strewing the whole course of its fall 
with immense fragments, which now serve 
only to give shelter to foxes, wild cats, and 
badgers; the poet is sufficiently justified in 
supposing this to have occasioned the demo¬ 
lition of the cave that gave shelter to the Dou¬ 
glas and the fair Ellen. 

It may be permitted to remark, that in this 
recess, consecrated, in the eye of fancy, by so 
many interesting recollections, the gloomy me¬ 
mory of the Druids and Urisks must yield to 
the impression of the more tender feelings 
which are so powerfully excited by the fable 
of our modern bard. Since the publication 
of the Lady of the Lake , no person of taste or 
sentiment has probably set his foot in Coir - 


128 


nan-Uriskin , without calling to his mind that 
there “ the angel hymn of Ellen” was raised 
to Heaven, and that there the daughter of 
the Douglas passed a melancholy night. 

In corroboration of what has been formerly 
suggested, it may be added, in the words of an 
intelligent friend, a very competent judge of 

the picturesque,- “ that the native High- 

(t landers entertain a very different idea of 
<( the scenery of the Trosachs, and of that of 
“ Ben-venue, (two objects,” says he, “ which, 
“ though contiguous, are yet essentially dif- 
(< ferent, the latter being unquestionably the 
“ finest of the two,) from that which the profi- 
“ cient in a taste for the sublime and beautiful 
“ in nature and art is apt to form ; and hence, 
“ when they assigned Coir-nan - Uriskin for the 
“ rendezvous of the Urisks , they did this, not 
only on account of its sequestered situation, 
“ but also on that of its conceived deformity, 


199 

“ and utter unfitness for human comfort and 
<e inhabitation. Overlooking the sublimity of 
“ the general form, and the beauty of the ex- 
tc terior decoration, their imaginations fixed 
“ themselves upon the huge and rough masses 
“ of moss-covered rocks, piled on each other in 
ee wild confusion; upon the spongy bogs, and 
“ blood-congealing damps which exhale from 
“ the darksome recesses of the cove. In short/’ 
besides the probable influence of ancient tradi¬ 
tion , 66 they considered this as a place suited 
“ only to the residence of the lubber fiends. 
4< And it may be observed with truth, that the 
<e interior of Coir-nan -- Uriskin does excite, 
<{ even in the amateur of scenery, very differ- 
“ ent sensations from those to which the ge- 
“ neral prospect gives rise, including the va- 
te ried, and, it may be said, the preternatural 
(C splendour, the aerial plumage, and birth- 


i 


130 


“ day pomp of the northern shoulder of Ben- 
6 ‘ venue. Gloomy and terrifying in the home 
“ detail, this region is gay, debonair, and 
" lovely beyond all expression in its exterior 
“ aspect.” 

Let the tourist be advised, before he quits 
the goblin's cave, to ascend as far as its eastern 
verge until he comes within view of the lake. 
The prospect is very striking. Here, on the 
trunk of an ancient fallen birch tree, the wri¬ 
ter of these pages found a singular specimen 
of the boletus , (probably the hepaticus of Hud¬ 
son,) which he presented to the collection of 
Dr Barclay of Edinburgh. Miss Black of 
Glasgow, and Mr Stirling of Port, who were 
of the party, presented each a specimen to the 
Hunterian Museum. 


BEALACH-NAM-BO. 


The young and athletic tourist may ascend, 
though with some danger, and much difficul¬ 
ty, from this cave through the chasm on the 
southern side, occasioned, as has been stated, 
by the fall of a large portion of the impending 
rock. When arrived at the summit, about 
800 feet about the level of the lake, he has 
Bealach-nam-bo , or the pass of cattle , before 
him on the south. “ This,” says Mr Scott, 
<c is a magnificent glade, overhung with aged 
“ birches, a little higher up the mountain 
66 than Coir-nan- Uriskin. The whole com- 
« poses the most sublime piece of scenery that 
" the imagination can conceive.” 1 


5 Canto III. Note 15. 



This pass is, indeed, nothing else than an 
immense gap, formed by the recession of the 
northern shoulder of Benvenue from the body 
of the mountain, in consequence of some vio¬ 
lent convulsion of nature. The imagination, 
lost in astonishment, is apt to picture the twin 
precipices, stupendous but elegant, by which 
it is bounded, as the avenue which leads from 
the “work-day world” to the abode of ano¬ 
ther and higher sphere. In these inaccessible 
cliffs the black eagle had her eyrie, commit¬ 
ting much havock among lambs and sheep 
in the early spring, till some years ago she 
was expelled by a person let down by ropes 
from a height of forty feet: whilst he was 
plundering the nest the old eagle returned, 
and was shot by a person stationed on the top 
of the rock; since which period the species 
has not haunted Bealach-nam-bo . 

After having attentively surveyed this won- 


13 $ 


derful scenery, let the stranger again betake 
himself to his boat, and, steering along the 
north-eastern shore of Ellen’s Island, his eye 
will be delighted with the boldness of the bank, 
thickly wooded with oaks, mountain-ashes,, 
and especially aged aspens, 1 (the populus tre - 
mulct of Linnaeus,) whose tops are sometimes 
dipped in the wave, while the roots and 
branches are intertwisted in a thousand fan¬ 
tastic forms. On the steep brow of the north¬ 
ern promontory of the isle may be traced— 


1 It is a pity that Mr Scott, whose description of this 
scenery is, in other respects, remarkably true to nature, 
should have allowed himself to commit a slight violation 
of the truth of natural history, by introducing the Cle¬ 
matis here, which is not known to be a native of Scot¬ 
land; and by making the. Idean vine, (one of the vacci- 
niums,) which is a minute shrub, “ to twine.” Canto 
I. St. 26. The Circea Lutetiana , or enchanter’s night¬ 
shade, which really grows here, would have done better 



i 34 


ci The clambering unsuspected road, 

That winded through the tangled screen/” 

On quitting the island, 1 2 he may either di¬ 
rect his course to the <c silver strand,” near 
which Fitz-James 

-“ Stood concealed amid the brake. 

To view the Lady of the Lake,” 

or he may be conveyed by water to the spot 
where he first embarked. 

In returning through the Trosachs towards 
the east, some of the yiews that occur are 
fine, but very different from those which had 
presented themselves in travelling in the oppo- 


1 Canto I. St. 25. 

2 It is reported that the honourable proprietor intends 
to erect a cottage upon the island precisely after the mo¬ 
del of that of Douglas, as described by Mr Scott, Canto 
I. St. 26. By doing so he pays a high compliment to the 
poet, and does much honour to his own taste. 




135 


site direction. The magnificent back-ground is 
now lost, and the tame moors and heathy emi¬ 
nences, now before the eye, form an insipid 
counterpart to the rugged cliffs and towering 
heights of Binnan and Ben-venue. There are, 
perhaps, few travellers who, in leaving the 
Trosachs, have not experienced a lassitude 
and vacancy of mind, similar to that which 
we feel after having been powerfully agitated 
by agreeable sensations; it is like taking up 
the Tristia of Ovid, after having been reading 
the Iliad of Homer; or like returning to the 
insipidity of ordinary life, after witnessing the 
most splendid and interesting exhibitions of 
the theatre. 

Having thus attempted to conduct the 
stranger, whether from the north or the east 
of Scotland, to this now classic scenery, point¬ 
ing out some of the objects most interesting 
to his curiosity that occur by the way, let us 


136 


now proceed to describe the only remaining 
route to the Trosachs,—that from the south 
and west. 


137 


IIL FROM THE SOUTH AND WEST, BY DRY- 
MEN, GARTMORE, AND ABERFOYLE. 


To the traveller from the south and west 
of Scotland, a nearer and very interesting 
route presents itself by Drymen, Gartmore, 
and Aberfoyle. From Glasgow to Drymen 
is seventeen miles and a half, and from Dun¬ 
barton to the same place eleven. The road® 
in both these directions, is excellent. 


* 



FROM GLASGOW. 


After passing several elegant country seats 
in the environs of Glasgow, we cross the Kel¬ 
vin, now a respectable river, by the bridge of 
Garscuble, about five miles from the city. On 
the left, the seat of Sir Ilay Campbell, Baro¬ 
net, is seen to great advantage, beautifully 
situated upon the banks of the river, and sur¬ 
rounded with fine plantations. On the right, 
at the distance of about half a mile, Killer- 
mont, the seat of the Right Honourable A. Col- 
quhoun, the present Lord Advocate of Scot- 
lond, comes into view. Advancing northward 
we pass Balvi, the seat of Henry Glasford, 

Esq., and Mains, the seat of-Douglas, 

Esq. The lover of natural history will be 
gratified with a very curious specimen of ba- 


139 


saltic rock, situated on the left hand, very near 
the road, about half a mile to the south of 
Alt-marrag toll The columns are small and 
elegant, lying almost horizontally , and pre¬ 
senting, in the front of a quarry which has 
been lately used, an appearance precisely si¬ 
milar to that of the side of a honey-comb* 
After having crossed the Stockie Muir, of 
about three miles, the dreariness of which is 
considerably relieved by the fine view which 
its summit affords of Lochlomond and its 
islands, we pass Croy, the seat of Professor 
Richardson of Glasgow College, situated in 
the vale of Blane, upon the right. Its roman¬ 
tic glen, with its well-wooded environs, the 
stream of Dowalt, tumbling in an unbroken 
sheet over a rock of at least fifty feet, and 
murmuring along amidst overshadowing trees, 
—all well deserve the attention of the traveller 
of taste* 


7 


140 


The beautiful valley of Blane is seen stretch¬ 
ing out to the right, adorned with thriving 
plantations: an insulated hill of near 500 feet 
high, covered almost wholly with coppice 
wood, gives interest to the further extremity 
of this vale. The vale of Endric, extending 
towards the left, is ornamented with many 
elegant seats. At the eastern extremity, Cul- 
cruich, the seat of Peter Speirs, Esq. sur¬ 
rounded with extensive plantations, meets the 
eye. Above the house, in the brow of the 
rock, a little to the east, may be seen one of 
the finest specimens of basalt that is to be 
found, at least, in the interior of the island. 
It consists of a grand colonnade of basaltic pil¬ 
lars, of about seventy in number; some of 
them separating in joints, and others appa¬ 
rently without any joint or fissure from top to 
bottom. They stand perpendicular to the ho¬ 
rizon, and their height is about fifty feet* 


14-1 


Some of them are quadrangular, and others* 
pentagonal and hexagonal. On the eastern 
side of the range* the columns are separated 
from one another by insterstices of three or 
four inches. These gradually lessen towards 
the west, till the whole is blended in one so¬ 
lid mass, which is much honey-combed, and 
has the appearance of having undergone fu¬ 
sion. 

It may be here remarked, that the whole of 
this range of mountain, extending from Dun¬ 
barton to Stirling, under the denomination of 
the Lennox Hills, appears to partake more or 
less of the basaltic character 

Further down the Endric, Ballikinren, the 
seat of Mr Napier; Parkhall, that of Archibald 
Fletcher, Esq. advocate, with many other pret¬ 
ty villas, are to be seen. The flourishing vil¬ 
lage of Balfron is in full view. 

This vicinity, besides, offers many interest- 


142 


ing recollections to the literary and scientific 
tourist. In the vale of Blane, near the village 
of Killearn, on a farm called Moss, was born 
the celebrated historian and poet, George Bu¬ 
chanan, the literary ornament of Scotland, 
and the prodigy of an unenlightened age. A 
part of the humble cottage which gave him 
birth is still preserved by the laudable care 
of Mr Finlay, the proprietor. Several ancient 
trees still remain, which are reported to have 
been planted by George when a boy. An 
elegant monument, in the form of an obelisk, 
of 103 feet in height, by 19 feet square at the 
base, was erected to his memory at the village 
of Killearn, by the voluntary contributions of 
the neighbouring gentlemen, in 1788. It forms 
a prominent object in the eye of the traveller. 
Near the confluence of the Blane and the 
Endric, there is a romantic fall of water on 
the latter, called the Pot of Gartness. But 


143 


this spot is chiefly interesting to the scientific 
traveller, by its having been for some time the 
residence of the celebrated John Napier, Ba¬ 
ron of Merchiston, the inventor of logarithms. 
The Earl of Buchan, in his life of that emi¬ 
nent man, who was born near Edinburgh in 
1550, professes himself to be unable to trace 
him from his leaving the university till the 
year 1593.* It seems probable, from Mac¬ 
kenzie, that he passed a part of that period in 
travelling upon the continent; and it is also 
probable, that he spent some years, during 
that interval, in pursuing his profound re¬ 
searches in the solitude of Gartness Castle, 
some remains of which are still to be seen. 

The introduction of two beautiful stanzas 
from one of Professor Richardson’s Descrip- 


* See Lord Buchan’s Life of Napier, p. 12. 



144 


tive Odes, on the subject of these instances of 
local celebrity, will probably be gratifying to 
the reader: 

“ The Endric, in wildly lyric mood, 

Displays her laurel crown ; 

And tells, that, musing by her flood, 

Sage Napier earned renown; 

That oft she paused, and mark’d at midnight hour, 
The pale lamp glimmering in his ivied tower. 

“ Triumphant even the yellow Blane, 

Tho’ by a foe defaced. 

Boasts that Buchanan’s early strain 
Consoled her troubled breast. 

That often, muse-struck, in her loneliest nook, 

The orphan boy pored on some metred book.” 


The author then proceeds to vindicate its 
meed of celebrity to the Dowalt, and its beau¬ 
tiful cascade, as having attracted the notice, 
and employed the pencil of her Grace the 
Duchess of Montrose: 


145 


-“ By her pencil’s magic power, 

She bids thy beauty live: 

Now, Dowalt, bless the auspicious hour ! 

Now, Dowalt, cease to grieve ; 

But to the choir of elder nymphs proclaim, 
That noble Montague hath given thee fame.” 


From Croy we proceed to the little village 
of Drymen, where some accommodations may 
be obtained by the passing traveller . It will 
be proper for him, at least, to refresh his 
horses before he ascends the long and dreary 
hill above the village. 

Before we leave Drymen, however, whether 
to take the road over the hill to Aberfoyle, or 
to explore the decorations of Buchanan, and 
the beauties of Lochlomond, let us suppose 
that the tourist has taken his departure for 
this place from Dunbarton, by the Leven and 
Kilmaronock. 

K 


146 


FROM DUNBARTON, BY KILMARO- 
NOCK. 

Advancing by the road that winds along 
the Leven, Leven-side, the seat of John Camp¬ 
bell of Stonefield, Esq. is seen on the left, in 
the midst of an extensive lawn, surrounded 
by woods. On the opposite side of the river, 
at the village of Renton, the traveller will re¬ 
mark a lofty column, dedicated by the late 
James Smollet of Bonhill, Esq. to the memo¬ 
ry of his celebrated relation Dr Tobias Smol¬ 
let, who was born near that spot. Upon the 
pedestal there is a suitable inscription in clas¬ 
sical Latin: it is hoped the reader will not be 
displeased to meet with an English transla¬ 
tion of it on this occasion : 


14/7 


Halt, Traveller! 

If the graces of wit, if fertility of genius. 

If masterly skill in the delineation of manners-. 
Have ever been the objects of thy admiration, 
Pause a little over the memory of 
Tobias Smollet^M.D. 

With those virtues both of the man and of the citizen, 
Which claim thy applause and imitation. 

He was eminently adorned: 

Deeply versed in various departments of literature. 
He handed down his name to posterity 
By a felicity of writing peculiar to himself ; 
When he was snatched from the world, 

By a premature death. 

In the 51st year of his age. 

Far from his native land. 

Near Leghorn in Italy, 

Lie his remains. 

In memory of his many and distinguished excellencies, 
THIS COLUMN, 

Unavailing record, alas ! of affection, 

Was erected on the banks of the Leven, 

The place of his nativity, 

And the subject of his latest song, by 
James Smollet of Bonhill, his cousin-german, 
Who ought rather to have received 
This last tribute from him. 


148 


The clear and equable stream of this beau¬ 
tiful river, the busy scene of active manufac¬ 
turing industry which enlivens its banks, and 
the elegant mansions of Tillycliewen, Ar- 
doch, &c. which adorn the vicinity, can¬ 
not fail to interest and delight the stranger 
in an uncommon degree. Before we turn to 
the right on the way to Dry men, we have a 
fine peep of the southern extremity of Loch- 
lomond, where the Leven issues from it. The 
new church of Bonhill, on this route, situated 
on the banks of the river, is a striking object. 
In the church-yard may be seen one of the 
largest ash-trees in Scotland. 

About eight miles from Dunbarton, you 
obtain a fine general view ofLochlomond, ter¬ 
minated by a gradually retiring and variously 
contrasted group of Highland mountains; 
and having, in the near ground, the luxuriant 
woods, and newly-built mansion of Ross, the 


149 


seat of Hector Macdonald Buchanan, Esq. 
one of the principal clerks of session. It is 
built after a design furnished by Mr James 
Gillespie, architect, a gentleman distinguished 
in his profession, with a happy adaptation to 
the surrounding scenery, in the form of a pri¬ 
ory. This approximation to the ancient Go¬ 
thic architecture, promises, when finished, 
to combine elegance of external effect with 
splendid and comfortable internal accommo¬ 
dation. 

In passing Kilmaronock, an ancient castle, 
in ruins, situated on the north side of the road, 
contributes to the picturesque effect of the 
valley. It belonged to a branch of the family 
of Cochrane, which, in 1724, succeeded to 
the estates and honours of the Earl of Dun- 
donald. The door of the ancient church of 
Kilmaronock furnishes a specimen of Saxon 
architecture. 


150 


From the road, at this place, the most fa¬ 
vourable view presents itself of Buchanan, the 
seat of his Grace the Duke of Montrose. It 
is surrounded by a lawn and pleasure grounds 
of more than 1500 acres, decorated with eve¬ 
ry embellishment which taste and opulence 
can bestow; it has been often remarked, that 
this domain bears a nearer resemblance, both 
in its extent and in its ornaments, to an Eng¬ 
lish park, than any thing that is to be met 
with in Scotland. Lofty hills, now covered, 
in a great part, with thriving plantations, 
which are every year extending, form the back¬ 
ground on the north. The finest lake in Bri¬ 
tain, skirted by Benlomond, and the towering 
mountains of Dunbartonshire, close the pros¬ 
pect to the north and west. The lawn, finely 
sprinkled with oaks and beeches of more than 
two centuries old, is immediately under the 
eye. 


151 


Just before we cross the Endric, we leave 
Catter, the residence of George Menzies, 
Esq. Chamberlain to his Grace, immediately 
on the right. In this highly-finished place, 
every object that can please the eye is dispo¬ 
sed in the jus test taste. 

It may be noticed particularly, that there 
are few situations in the whole course of this 
tour, which present such a charming evening 
scene as Catter; the mansion, gardens, and 
pleasure grounds of Buchanan, its extensive 
plain stretching as far as the lake, the lake 
itself, studded with islands, with the grand 
amphitheatre of mountains in the distance, 
gilded with the rays of the departing sun, 
form, in a fine evening of summer, a scene 
of tranquil beauty and sublimity, on which 
every mind possessed of taste and sensibility 
will delight to repose. 



152 


Still, before we quit the beautiful vale of 
the Endric to cross the unpromising muir of 
Drymen, let us pause a little, to escort the 
stranger, who wishes to explore the eastern 
shore of Lochlomond, as far as Rowardennan, 
distant about ten miles, by an excellent road. 


153 


FROM DRYMEN TO ROWARDEN- 
NAN. 


As he passes on to Bealmacha, (four miles 
distant) the noted pass in the Grampians by 
which Glun-dhu swept away the herd with 
the white bull of Gallangad , 1 he will be ena¬ 
bled to form a juster estimate of the pleasure 
grounds and plantations of Buchanan, which 
extend as far as the Pass. The beautiful island 
of Inchcailloch, or Nun’s Island, separated by 
a narrow channel from the shore, with several 
other islands stretching out in the same line 
to the south-west, will appear particularly stri- 
king. 


1 See Lady of the Lake, Canto IV. St. IV. 



154 


Here the line of front which the Grampian 
range presents to the south-east, and which 
may be traced from its commencement at the 
Hill of Ardmore, upon the Clyde, to its ter¬ 
mination at the Girdleness of Aberdeen, is 
very distinctly marked j it will now be evi¬ 
dent to the eye, that the islands of Inchcail- 
loch, Inchtorr, Incligrange, and the very pic¬ 
turesque island of Inchmurrin, are only a con¬ 
tinuation of the Grampians, emerging from 
the lake. 

On getting through the pass, which fur¬ 
nishes a very complete idea of those inlets to 
the Highlands, a magnificent view of Loch- 
lomond and its environs opens. An expanse 
of water of about ten miles in length, and at 
least five miles in breadth, skirted on both 
sides by luxuriant woods, a group of islands 
of various extent and form, some inhabited 
and under cultivation, some level and low, and 


1 


1 55 


others rising to the height of 300 feet above 
the surface of the lake, and almost all of them 
clothed with coppice wood, furnish altogether 
a coup (Tuceil which will probably be admitted 
to be the finest in Britain. 

From Bealmacha, the tourist passes on by 
the margin of the lake, for the most part, but 
sometimes retiring from it to meet it again 
with greater interest. Coppice woods, in the 
most complete style of management, and in¬ 
terspersed with trees of large size, and ancient 
growth, skirt, and sometimes overshadow the 
road throughout its course. At Rowarden- 
nan, at the very base of Benlomond, the road 
terminates. There the traveller will find a 
neat little inn, with comfortable accommoda¬ 
tions. A ferry, furnished with good boats, 
sufficient to convey horses and carriages across 
the lake, is established here, as well as on the 


156 


other side. At this place the lake is scarcely 
a mile in breadth. 

As Rovvardennan is the station from which 
travellers most generally set out in order to 
scale Benlomond, this seems to be the proper 
place for introducing some account of that 
mountain, which is, indeed, no less interest¬ 
ing to the student in natural history, than to 
the admirer of the picturesque. 


DESCRIPTION OF BENLOMOND. 


Benlomond, in Stirlingshire, is 3240 feet 
in height above the surface of the lake, and 
3262 above the level of the sea. In loftiness, 
indeed, it is surpassed considerably by Bene- 
vis, Bengloe, Benlawers, and others; but per¬ 
haps this difference in height will appear to 
the intelligent traveller to be more than com¬ 
pensated by the elegance of its insulated situ¬ 
ation, (if the expression may be allowed) with 
respect to the neighbouring mountains. 

From 
presents 


different points of view, Benlomond 
differerlfaspects. In travelling along 




153 


the shores of Lochlomond, either on the east¬ 
ern or western side, but especially on the lat¬ 
ter, the mountain exhibits generally the ap¬ 
pearance of a huge truncated cone, with one 
shoulder projecting somewhat out of that fair 
proportion, towards the south-east. 

But the point of view in which Benlomond 
undoubtedly appears to the greatest advan¬ 
tage is from the north-east. In travelling 
from Stirling westward, by Aberfoyle, this 
mountain uniformly bounds the landscape in 
the form of a pyramid, with equally propor¬ 
tioned sides, and unmutilated by the interfe¬ 
rence of any of the adjacent hills. 

In the months of July, August, and Sep¬ 
tember, the summit of Benlomond is frequent¬ 
ly visited by strangers, from every quarter of 
the island, as well as by foreigners, whose cu¬ 
riosity leads them to travel in the Highlands. 
It may be proper to remark, that the latter of 


159 


these months is perhaps, of all others, the 
most favourable for such an excursion, as at 
that time, on account of the cool temperature 
of the atmosphere, the air is less charged with 
vapours, than during the intense heats of sum¬ 
mer. 

In visiting Benlomond from Rowardennan, 
a guide is generally procured, who will be 
found serviceable, not only to conduct the 
stranger to the summit by the easiest path, 
but also to convey the refreshments which are 
indispensably necessary to recruit his exhaust¬ 
ed spirits from time to time. A great many 
years ago, some elegant and appropriate verses 
were written by an English gentleman on the 
subject of ascending Benlomond, which still 
remain on a pane of glass, in a window of the 
inn at Tarbert, on the other side of the lake. 
Though they appeared, about that time, in 
some periodical publications, it is presumed 


160 


that it will not be deemed improper to intro¬ 
duce them upon this occasion : 

“ Stranger, if o’er this pane of glass perchance 
Thy roving eye should cast a casual glance; 

If taste for grandeur, and the dread sublime, 

Prompt thee Benlomond’s fearful height to climb ; 
Here stop, attentive, nor with scorn refuse 
The friendly rhymings of a tavern Muse. 

For thee the Muse this rude instruction planned, 
Prompted, for thee, her humble poet’s hand. 

Heed thou the poet, he thy steps shall lead 
Safe o’er yon tow’ring hill’s aspiring head. 

Attentive, then, to this informing lay, 

Read what he dictates as he points the way. 

“ Trust not at first a quick advent’rous pace; 

Six miles its top points gradual from the base. 

Up the high rise, with panting haste I passed, 

And gain’d the long laborious steep at last. 

More prudent you when once you pass the deep, 
With cautious steps and slow, ascend the steep. 

Oh ! stop a while, oft taste the cordial drop. 

And rest, oh! rest, long long upon the top. 

There hail the breezes, nor with toilsome haste 
Down the rough slope thy youthful vigour waste: 


161 


So shall thy wond’ring sight at once survey 
Woods, lakes, and mountains, vallies, rocks and sea; 
Huge hills, that heaped in crowded order stand. 
Stretched o’er the western and the northern land: 
Enormous groups! While Ben, who often shrouds 
His lofty summit in a veil of clouds. 

High o’er the rest, exulting in his state. 

In proud pre-eminence sublimely great. 

One side, all awful to th’ astonish’d eye, 

Presents a rise three hundred fathoms high ; 

Which swells tremendous on th’ affrighted sense, 

In all the pomp of dread magnificence. 

All this, and more, thou shalt with wonder see. 

And own a faithful monitor in me.” 

The above verses are subscribed Thomas Russel, 
Oct. 3, 1771. 

When we arrive at the summit, a scene 
presents itself which few in Britain can pre¬ 
tend to rival. At the bottom of the moun¬ 
tain, one of the finest lakes in Europe is 
seen, through its whole extent of about thirty 
miles; stretching out from small beginnings, 
to a breadth, towards its southern extremity, 
L 


162 


of about six miles; its surface beautifully di¬ 
versified with islands, and its shores skirted 
with woods, and houses, and cultivated 
grounds. 

In the range of the horizon, from the east 
by the south, to the south-west, the eye is suc¬ 
cessively presented with the rich plains of Stir¬ 
lingshire and the Lothians ; the heights of 
Lanarkshire; the vales of Renfrewshire; the 
coast of Ireland; Kintyre, and the Western 
Ocean. 

But the circumstance which will perhaps 
appear the most striking to the stranger, is 
the idea which he will now, for the first time, 
be enabled to form of the great outline of the 
Highlands of Scotland; for which no station 
is better adapted than Benlomond, where the 
prospect is unencumbered by the interference 
of any other hills. 

From the east, where the Ochills have their 


163 


commencement, directing the eye westwards, 
by the north, through a space of more than 
half the circle of the horizon, you are pre¬ 
sented with a vast amphitheatre, bounded 
every where by lofty mountains, whose shades 
gradually melt away from the sight, and blend 
themselves at length with the blue colours of 
the sky. In this stupendous scene, the tra¬ 
veller will recognize Benlawers, Benvorlich, 
and Benledi, on the north-east; Cruachan and 
Benevis on the west; Benmore on the north; 
the Paps of Jura, and Goatfield in Arran, on 
the south-west. His eye will be relieved from 
time to time, by dwelling on the beautiful lakes 
of Perthshire, some of which are so near as 
to be seen in bird’s-eye prospect. 

The mountain itself affords, besides, a great 
variety of scenery. To the south-east it 
stretches out nto asl ope of very gentle decli¬ 
vity. The north side is awfully abrupt ; it 


164. 


presents a concave precipice of many hundred 
yards in depth. He must possess firm nerves 
who can approach the brink, and look down 
unmoved. When you descend into this con¬ 
cavity, by the ravine already mentioned, it 
appears to form a semicircular bason of vast 
extent. A gun fired in this concavity, returns 
a long and variously reverberated echo; 
though, from the rareness of the atmosphere 
on the summit, the report of a gun is there 
extremely faint. 

In the variable weather of July and August, 
the traveller has sometimes the awful enjoy¬ 
ment, of sitting in a serene atmosphere on the 
summit of the mountain, whilst the thunder 
cloud rolls below, and the livid lightening 
flashes between him and the surface of the 
lake. Caught in this situation, let him not 
linger long upon the summit, but retire as fast 
as he can from a spot where the variations of 


165 


the weather are sudden, and the war of the 
elements far more formidable than on the 
plain. 

To the natural historian, Benlomond is 
highly interesting. No minerals, indeed, of 
any rarity or value have been discovered there. 
The rock consists, for the most part, of green¬ 
stone, interspersed with masses of quartz. On 
the western side there is abundance of waving 
schistus. 

The ptarmigan is found in the higher re¬ 
gions. Whether from stupidity of nature, or 
from being seldom disturbed by the intrusions 
of man, the ptarmigan fears not his approach, 
but sits still till you are almost close upon 
him. 

Few mountains present a more fertile field 
to the botanist. After he has got within half 
a mile of the summit, the habit of the vege¬ 
tables is altogether different from what he had 


166 ’ 


observed in the lower regions. When the 
young botanist ascends Benlomond for the first 
time,, he will be struck with the sudden transi¬ 
tion by which he is carried, in the space of a few 
minutes, from the vulgar inhabitants of the 
plain, to the elegant natives of the Alpine re¬ 
gions. Here every thing is changed; besides 
the plants that are peculiar to the Alpine 
heights, he will find the vegetables which 
abound below so altered in their appearance as 
to form new species. The Epilobium , the Alche - 
milla, the Saxifrages , the Cerastium> have now 
assumed a new habit; and are no longer his 
common acquaintance of the plain. Add to 
these the native plants of the mountains; 
large patches of the elegant green, variegated 
with the bright red flower of the Silene acau - 
Us; the Sibbaldia procumbens, with its trident- 
ated leaves, growing profusely on the very 
summit; the Rhodiola rosea , in the brow of 


167 


every rock; the Azalea procumbent the mi¬ 
nutest of woody plants, sparingly scattered on 
the south-east shoulder; the Trientalis , in the 
woods that hang over the lake below; the 
Statice, abundant on the south-east shoulder; 
the Rubus Chamcemorus , (whose not unfra- 
grant fruit is ripe in July) in plenty, about half 
way up the mountain. 

This account of Benlomond may be con¬ 
cluded, by remarking, that the partisans of 
the volcanic system may be disposed to ad¬ 
duce the form and appearance of this moun¬ 
tain in confirmation of their theory. Its co¬ 
nical shape will naturally strike the traveller 
as the probable effect of subterraneous fire. 
And, though there is now no appearance of a 
crater at the top, it may be observed, that the 
mountain, in its present state, seems evidently, 
by some convulsion of nature, to have suffer¬ 
ed a defalcation of near one half of the origi- 


168 


nal substance of its summit; that the northern 
side of the mountain seems, at some period, 
to have tumbled down, and to have formed 
those shapeless masses which we still observe 
towards that quarter. 

When it is recollected, however, as was ob¬ 
served on a former occasion, that all the great 
mountains present a similar appearance, the 
theory of Mr Kirwan, already alluded to, 
may appear to account sufficiently for the 
phenomena of Benlomond. 

From Benlomond the traveller may de¬ 
scend, very safely, through the deep ravine, 
on the north side of the mountain, to the 
farm-house of Comar, at its base; and 
thence he may proceed, by a tolerable road, 
along the shores of Lochard, to Aberfoyle, 
distant about nine miles. 


169 


FROM DRYMEN TO GARTMORE 
AND ABERFOYLE. 

Let us now return to the village of Dry- 
men, to accompany the tourist who wishes to 
proceed directly, by that route, to the Tro- 
sachs. 

From Dry men to Gartmore is seven miles, 
across the hill; the road is rough, but pass¬ 
able to carriages. It is now undergoing a 
thorough repair. From the brow of the hill 
above Drymen, looking S. W. a most striking 
view of Lochlomond } interspersed with islands, 
which evidently form a part of the Grampian 
range, with its western shore finely clothed 
with woods, offers itself to the eye. 

Nothing can be bleaker than the scene 
which presents itself at the summit of the hil], 


170 


just when the beautiful vale in which the En- 
drick flows, is lost to the view on the south, 
and before the vale of Menteith opens on the 
north. When Mr Wilkes and his friend 
Churchill visited Scotland, about 1760, they 
proceeded thus far; but at this spot, horrified 
with the forlorn appearance of the scene, and 
apprehending that they had reached the ut¬ 
most verge of Scottish cultivation, they turn¬ 
ed their horses, and sought shelter for the 
night at Buchanan house. The Duke of Mon¬ 
trose was then in London, but they were most 
hospitably entertained for three days, by his 
Grace’s chamberlain, with Highland mutton 
and old claret; of which they, <c nothing 
loth,” most liberally partook. The satirical 
poet, on reaching London, returned this hos¬ 
pitality by writing his celebrated poem, enti¬ 
tled, “ The Prophecy of Famine,” in which 
he introduces the scene of Drymen muir with 


171 


abundant effect; but he forgot to record the 
liberal fare of Buchanan. 


GARTMORE. 

In passing Gartmore-house, the seat of Mr 
Cuninghame Graham, the curiosity of the 
traveller will be gratified by spending an 
hour, in seeing a house, which, even in a 
country less rude than this, would be justly 
reckoned elegant. The drawing-room, both 
in its dimensions and style of finishing, is 
perhaps one of the most elegant north of the 
Tweed. The amateur in painting will be de¬ 
lighted to find here two cabinet pictures of 
Morning and Evening, by Claude Lorraine; 
a cattle piece, by Berghem ; a flight into 
Egypt, by Rubens; a drunken egg mer¬ 
chant, by Jean Stein ; an attack of banditti, 


172 


by Salvator; and though last and least in 
dimensions, not the least beautiful, a portrait 
of Gerard Dow, by himself. In the dining¬ 
room there is a family portrait by Hogarth, of 
some of the relatives of this house, in which 
the painter has introduced himself. Besides 
a number of family pictures, there are por¬ 
traits of Lord Karnes, of the late Dr Dickson, 
Bishop of Downe and Connor, the friend of 
the late Right Hon. Charles James Fox, and 
the only person on whom he had an oppor¬ 
tunity of conferring a bishoprick, during his 
short administration, in his coalition with 
Lord North. In the library also is a portrait 
of Professor Richardson, of Glasgow College, 
in an uncommon style of shading, by Rae* 
burn. 


173 


ABERFOYLE. 

From Gartmore to Aberfoyle is three miles, 
by a very good road. A comfortable inn has 
been lately built by his Grace the Duke of 
Montrose, where the stranger will meet with 
good beds, stables, and other accommodations. 
From the inn to the opening of the Trosachs 
is five miles and a half, across the hill; but by 
Port and Callander, twenty-two miles. The 
road that leads over the hill is steep and rug¬ 
ged; it does not admit of carriages, but is to¬ 
lerable for riders. Guides and horses may 
be had, on a short notice, at the inn. 

The valley of Aberfoyle, with its precipi¬ 
tous rock, its winding river, its meadows, 
and richly wooded knolls, has long been ad- 


m 


mired by strangers for its singular beauty. 
Lochard especially, with its bays and pro¬ 
montories, and wood-skirted banks, as is ad¬ 
mitted by all, rivals the finest of our Scottish 
lakes in picturesque effect; there are even 
many who are disposed to prefer its softer 
characters of beauty to all the wild sublimity 
of the Trosachs. It was in Aberfoyle that Mr 
Farrington, intent upon the object of his 
work, the delineation of the scenery of the 
Forth, took the most numerous and laboured 
views. * Before the stranger crosses the hill, 
therefore, let him dedicate a day to the exa¬ 
mination of this delightful region. 


1 The figures on the margin refer to the views deli¬ 
neated by Mr Farrington, and the author’s description 
of which was revised by that gentleman. 



175 


The praise of this beautiful vale has been 
thus celebrated by a native Bard: 

I. 

“To thee my filial bosom beats, 

On thee may heaven indulgent smile, 

And glad thy innocent retreats, 

And bless thee, lovely Aberfoyle. 

How pleasing to my pensive mind 
The memory of thy bold cascade ; 

Thy green woods waving to the wind. 

And streams in every vocal glade ! 

II. 

u The simple church, the school-house’ green, 
The gambols of the school-boy crew, 

Meadows and pools, that gleam between, 

Rush on my retrospective view: 

Shades too, and lanes by old age sought, 

To wander in at close of day, 

To ruminate the pious thought. 

And pray for children far away. 

III. 

“ Timely descend, ye fost’ring showers! 

With plenty bless that humble vale; 


176 


And fair arise, ye fragrant flowers. 

And healthful blow, thou western gale. 

And there, meandering Avendow, 

By no invidious fen defiled; 

Clear may thy youthful current flow! 

And love to linger in the wild !” 

Professor RICHARDSONS Ode on the 
Prospect of leaving Britain. 

1. Taking a station on a small eminence 
above the ford called Alinan, and directing 
the eye westwards, you have the whole of 
this beautiful little valley, two miles in length 
by about one in breadth, in full view. The 
Forth, called here by the natives the Aven¬ 
dow, or black river, traverses the whole ex¬ 
tent of the vale, which has the appearance 
of an amphitheatre surrounded by moun¬ 
tains, covered half way up with luxuriant 
woods. On the north especially, the valley 
is bounded by a mountain, which exhibits a 
tremendous precipice of at least 1000 feet 
5 


177 


high; and which seems to threaten destruc¬ 
tion to the traveller as he passes along the road, 
which winds its course immediately under 
the brow of the rock. From this precipice im¬ 
mense masses of rock tumble down from time 
to time with a noise like thunder; and the 
path through which they have passed is mark¬ 
ed out to the eye, like the deserted channel of 
a torrent. The lower part of the precipice is 
finely skirted with wood. Farther on, the 
woods and rocks are seen which overhang the 
first openings of Lochard. The back-ground 
is formed by Benlomond, which, on this side, 
exhibits an elegant conical shape. 

The Forth has its source in a small stream 
that arises at a place called Skia-riuir , or the 
ridge of yew trees, about 12 miles westward, 
beyond Lochcon; but it receives, about a mile 
above this station, a very important acces¬ 
sion to its streams from the water of Duchray, 

M 


178 


which has its rise near the summit of Benlo- 
mond; and which may seem to many to have 
an equal claim to the origin of the Forth. 

The valley of Aberfoyle is inclosed on the 
east and south, by that celebrated range of 
mountains, called the Grampians, which tra¬ 
verse the whole breadth of Scotland, from 
south-west to north-east. The distinctness 
with which this line of mountain preserves it¬ 
self, amidst the intersections of others, running 
in different directions, argues some very ex¬ 
tensive, yet uniform cause, to which this ap¬ 
pearance is to be attributed. 

In passing through this district, the inter¬ 
nal conformation of these mountains is mark¬ 
ed by very particular characters; a similar 
conformation has been traced in a line of more 
than 30 miles on each side; and it is pro¬ 
bable that it extends through the whole. 

The front which these mountains present 


179 


to the south-east, is found uniformly to con¬ 
sist of breccia, in which the rounded pebbles, 
which are imbedded in the cementing calca¬ 
reous substance, are of various sizes, from a 
half inch to eight or nine inches in diameter. 
These pebbles are of great weight, and of 
flinty hardness; they are of an elliptical form, 
and what is singular, they appear all to be pe¬ 
netrated through a great part of their sub¬ 
stance with slight fissures, which are uniform¬ 
ly in a direction parallel to the shorter axis, 
and by which they break, when violence is 
used. Does not this seem to indicate some 
other origin of these pebbles than friction 
against one another by the action of water ? 
Do they not exhibit the marks of cooling af¬ 
ter fusion ? Their silicious quality, however, is 
unfavourable to this idea. 

These immense masses of breccia present 
sometimes a perpendicular precipice, and 


180 


sometimes a rounded projection, both gene* 
rally destitute of vegetation. To this, how¬ 
ever, there is one beautiful exception, in a 
conical hill on the eastern extremity of the vale 
of Aberfoyle, of the finest proportions, rising 
to the height of near 500 feet, and covered to 
the summit with a thick wood of oak and 
birch. 

From the summit of this beautiful little hill, 
a most interesting view presents itself: Look¬ 
ing eastward, you have the windings of the 
Forth, deep skirted with woods, in bird’s-eye 
prospect; the lake of Menteith; Rednock- 
house, the seat of General Graham Stirling; 
Cardross, the seat of Mr Erskine; the great 
moss, with Stirling castle and the Ochills, in 
the back-ground; looking westward, the vale 
of Aberfoyle, with the winding river; the 
opening of Lochard, the great rock on the 


181 


north ; and in the back-ground, Benlomond, 
surrounded by inferior hills. 

In this same line of mountain, adjoining to 
these rocks, immediately on the west, masses 
of limestone are found from time to time; not 
disposed in strata, with a regular dip, but in 
detached beds, or nests , as the workmen term 
it. The limestone is blue, with beautiful veins 
of white; it is susceptible of a fine polish, and 
has been made into chimney-pieces, which 
approach to the beauty of marble. 

After a considerable interruption of vast 
masses of green-stone, extensive strata of fine 
blue slate are found to the westward, in this 
same line of hills. These are now wrought 
with great success, and rival the Easdale slate 
in beauty and lightness. All these strata uni¬ 
formly maintain the direction of the Gram¬ 
pian range. Slate is found in this line on 
Loch Vennachar and Lochlubnaig. 


182 


LOCHARD. 

About a mile to the westward of the inn, 
Lochard opens to the view. A few hundred 
yards to the east of it, the Avendow, which 
had just issued from the lake, tumbles its wa¬ 
ters over a rugged precipice of more than 30 
feet in height, forming, in the rainy season, 
several very magnificent cataracts. 

2. The first opening of the lower lake, from 
the east, is uncommonly picturesque. Direct¬ 
ing the eye nearly westward, Benlomond 
raises its pyramidal mass in the back-ground. 
In nearer prospect, you have gentle eminen¬ 
ces, covered with oak and birch to the very 
summit; the bare rock sometimes peeping 
through amongst the clumps. Immediately 


183 


under the eye, the lower lake, stretching out 
from narrow beginnings, to a breadth of about 
half a mile, is seen in full prospect. On the 
right, the banks are skirted with extensive 
oak woods, which cover the mountain more 
than half way up. 

This spot, in ancient times, formed the bar¬ 
rier between the low country, and the almost 
inaccessible tract that lies to the westward. 
It is called the Pass of Aberfoyle. Previous 
to the formation of the road, which now 
stretches along the banks of the lake, a few 
men stationed in this pass, could have re¬ 
pulsed an army in attempting to advance fur¬ 
ther into the Highlands : In the time of the 
commonwealth, a party of Cromwell's army, 
attempting to penetrate into the upper coun¬ 
try by this pass, was repulsed with consider¬ 
able loss, by the natives, headed by the Earl 
of Glencairn, and Graham of Duchray, whose 


184 


castle, situated about a mile to the southward, 
the invaders had just reduced to ashes. 1 * * * * * 

Advancing to the westward, you lose the 
lake for about a mile. The upper lake, which 
is by far the most extensive, is separated from 
the lower by a stream of about 200 yards in 
length. The most advantageous view of the 
upper lake presents itself from a rising ground 
near its lower extremity, where a foot-path 
strikes off to the south, into the wood that 
overhangs this connecting stream. 


1 A little to the westward of the inn, one of Duchray's 

followers shot one of the Englishmen from the opposite 

side of the river, who fell near a clump of trees, by the 

road side, which is called to this day. Bad an t 7 Shassonich, 

or the Englishman's clump; the term Sassonach , or Sax¬ 

on, being uniformly applied by Highlanders, not to the 

inhabitants of the Low Country, but to Englishmen. 



185 


UPPER LOCHARD. 

3. Looking westward, you have Benlomond 
in the back-ground, rising, at the distance 
of six miles, in the form of a regular cone, 
its sides presenting a gentle slope to the 
N. W. and S. E. On the right you have the 
lofty mountain of Benoghrie, running west, 
towards the deep vale in which Loclicon lies 
concealed from the eye. In the fore-ground 
Lochard stretches out to the west in fairest 
prospect; its length three miles, and its breadth 
a mile and a half. On the right it is skirted 
with woods; the northern and western extre¬ 
mity of the lake is diversified with meadows, 
and corn fields, and farm-houses. On the 
left, few marks of cultivation are to be seen; 
thick clumps of wood, elegantly disposed, 


186 


cover the eminences down to the water’s 
edge. 

About a mile distant from the station of the 
spectator, a cluster of small islands is seen 
close upon the southern shore. They are 
merely barren rocks. On one of them are 
still to be seen the ruins of an ancient edifice, 
said to have been built by Murdoch, Duke of 
Albany, uncle of James I. of Scotland. It is 
said, that he designed this as a place of re¬ 
treat when he apprehended a prosecution on 
account of his ambitious designs, for which, 
indeed, he was afterwards beheaded. 

Here Mr Farrington added the following 
remark:— 44 A stranger must feel himself un- 
44 commonly struck on meeting, at the very 
44 back of Benlomond, in a spot so sequester- 
44 ed as to be almost unknown to the world, 
44 a scene like the present; an extensive sheet 
44 of water, skirted with woods and cultivated 
44 fields, and accompanied with every object 


187 


* c essential to picturesque beauty; the whole 
<c grouped and diversified in a style of har- 
“ mony which may be thought by some to 
“ rival the scenes presented by the Cumber- 
“ land lakes.” 

Leaving this station, the traveller passes 
along the verge of the lake, under a ledge of 
perpendicular rock, from thirty to fifty feet 
high. Standing immediately under this rock, 
towards its western extremity, and looking to 
the other side of the lake, you have a double 
echo of uncommon distinctness. Upon pro¬ 
nouncing with a firm voice, a line of ten syl¬ 
lables, it is returned first from the opposite 
side of the lake; and, when that is finished, 
it is repeated with equal distinctness from the 
wood on the east. The day must be perfectly 
calm, and the lake as smooth as glass, for 
otherwise no human voice can be returned 
from a distance of at least a quarter of a mile. 


188 


In the crevices of this rock, and especially on 
the summit, maybe found an immense profu¬ 
sion of the Crithean , or populus tremulct. Here 
pike have been caught of 36 lb. weight. The 
extensive patches of the Nymphaa alba , which 
adorn the banks of Lochard, cannot fail to 
engage the attention of the botanist, and to 
please the eye of taste. The Lobelia, no where 
to be found to the east or south of the Gram¬ 
pians, not even in the lake of Menteith, which 
washes their base, is here abundant. 

Immediately above the farm-house of Le- 
dard, and near the west end of the lake, is to 
be seen a cascade, which the traveller will do 
well to visit. The stream, which is consider¬ 
able, falls in one sheet, over a height of ten or 
twelve feet, into a beautiful bason, formed of 
the solid rock, and so transparent, that at the 
depth of ten feet the smallest pebble may be 
seen. From this bason, dashing over a ledge 


189 


of rock, it precipitates itself again over an ir¬ 
regular slope of more than fifty feet, finely 
skirted with wood. On the edge of the above 
bason, grow some plants of the Hypericum 
Andros&mum , with the beautiful Vida Sylva- 
tica . 


LOCHCON; 

If the tourist’s time permits, his toil will be 
well rewarded by extending his excursion be¬ 
yond Lochard as far as Lochcon, which opens 
to the view about two miles to the west. It is 
a very romantic lake; its length is betweep 
two and three miles, and its breadth about 
one. The road is tolerably good, and is about 
to receive some repairs. This lake is finely 
skirted on the north with thriving woods of 
oak, ash, birch, and alder. On the south it 


190 


is bounded by a precipitous mountain of at 
least 1500 feet, sprinkled, towards the west, 
with aged birches to a great height, somewhat 
in the style of the lower skirts of Benvenue. 

Towards the west end of this mountain, a 
considerable stream pours itself down over a 
ledge of schistose rock, from a height of more 
than 1000 feet. Its course deviates a few 
degrees from the perpendicular, so that the 
stream does not throw itself over the rock, 
but glides swiftly down, after the manner of 
that at Croy. In very dry weather, this cas¬ 
cade makes no great figure; but even then the 
blanched rock over which it had glided bears 
a resemblance to a fall of water. In rainy 
weather its appearance is magnificent; the 
uncommon height compensating for the small¬ 
ness of the volume of water. By constructing 
a small reservoir in the mossy soil on the sum¬ 
mit of the mountain, which could easily be 


191 


done, water might, at any season, be collected 
in abundance; and, by letting it out occasion¬ 
ally, the Duke of Montrose would have it in 
his power to exhibit, on his estate, a cascade 
probably unrivalled in Europe. 

In a small island of the lake, a vast number 
of herons annually build their nests. They 
seem to have chosen this spot, both on account 
of its sequestered situation, and the abundance 
of fish which the lake affords. 

The road stretches north-west from the 
head of Lochcon to Inversnaid, upon the east¬ 
ern bank of Lochlomond. At a place called 
Skia-riiuir, or the ridge of yew trees, the high¬ 
est ground occurs in this direction between 
the eastern and western seas; the waters which 
flow to the east forming one of the sources of 
the Forth, and those to the west falling by 
Lochlomond into the Clyde. A little lake of 
about two miles in circumference, called Loch- 


192 


arclet, is left on the south of the road. Here¬ 
abouts a fine view may be had of the western 
portion of Loch Katrine, which is concealed 
from the visitant of the Trosachs, by the in¬ 
terference of hills and promontories in that 
quarter. 

At Inversnaid are to be seen the remains 
of barracks, now almost in ruins, where, till 
within these thirty or thirty-five years, a com¬ 
pany of soldiers was stationed, to repress the 
depredations of the freebooters who infested 
the low country, especially after the years 
1715 and 1745. It may be interesting to 
mention, that the celebrated General Wolfe 
was stationed for some time, whilst a subal¬ 
tern, at Inversnaid. The situation is the 
bleakest that can be imagined; though within 
less than a mile of the wood-skirted shores of 
Lochlomond there is not a peep of the lake 
to be had. Nothing is to be seen but moun- 


193 


tains, and rocks, and heath. A short walk, 
however, brings the lake into view; a fine 
stream issuing from Locharclet forms a beau¬ 
tiful cascade at the mill of Inversnaid. At 
this place the stranger may be ferried over, 
and he lands within three or four miles of the 
inn of Arroquhar. 

It may here be permitted to observe, that 
if a road were formed along the western skirts 
of Benlomond, through the woody wilds of 
Craigrostan, from Rowardennan to Inver¬ 
snaid, a space of about seven miles ; and if the 
road from Inversnaid to Lochard, by Loch- 
con, were a little repaired, the Duke of Mon¬ 
trose might enjoy a ride of near fifty miles, 
all upon his own property, excepting about 
one mile, where the road passes through 
the estate of Mr Cuninghame Graham, of 
Gartmore. In the course of this extensive 

ride, a series of scenes, unequalled in pictu- 
N 


194 


resque effect, successively present themselves. 
To describe these has indeed been the prin¬ 
cipal design of these pages. Passing from 
Buchanan-house, by Rowardennan, Inver- 
snaid, Lochcon, Lochard, the vale of Aber- 
foyle, Gartmore, and returning by the Muir 
of Drymen: or rather reversing that route, 
and setting out by the Muir of Drymen, Gart¬ 
more, Aberfoyle, Inversnaid, and Rowarden¬ 
nan, it is presumed that few noblemen in Scot¬ 
land, indeed, probably none, can, in an ex¬ 
cursion limited to his own domain, exhibit 
such a rich variety of whatever is beautiful 
and sublime in nature. 

Before we take leave of this region, it may 
be proper to state, that it is very usual for tra¬ 
vellers who visit the summit of Benlomond, to 
approach it on the north by Aberfoyle, the 
distance from the base being about nine miles. 
About a mile beyond the upper end of Loch- 


195 


ard they strike off to the left, and, having 
crossed a small hill, enter the valley of Glen- 
dow, through which one of the branches of 
the Forth has its course. The ascent of the 
mountain commences at the farm-house of 
Comar, at the further extremity of the glen; 
it is steep and rugged, but it is short. The 
stranger, having clambered, for the most part, 
through a deep and narrow ravine, finds him¬ 
self suddenly upon the summit, emerging, as 
it were, from the hollow bosom of a large 
crater. In this excursion he will require a 
guide, who can be procured about the head 
of Loch ard; and if he wishes to descend upon 
Rowardennan on his return, he can have his 
horse conducted thither by the eastern skirts 
of the mountain. If he had ascended, on the 
other hand, from Rowardennan, he can de¬ 
scend, as is often done, by Comar, and pro¬ 
ceed by Lochard to the inn at Aberfoyle. 


196 


FROM ABERFOYLE INN,. ACROSS 
THE MOUNTAIN, TO THE TRO- 
SACHS. 

Having thus endeavoured to conduct the 
tourist through the interesting scenery of this 
extensive region, it now only remains to de¬ 
scribe the route across the mountain from the 
inn at Aberfoyle to the Trosachs. This route 
being, as has been stated, only five miles and 
a half to the entrance of the Trosachs, and a 
comfortable inn to be found at Aberfoyle, is, 
of late years, equally frequented, especially by 
travellers from the south and west of Scotland, 
as that by Callander. 

In ascending, about half a mile above the 
inn, immediately to the right of the road, we 
pass a magnificent cascade of about a hundred 


197 


feet high; it is variously broken by jutting 
angles of the rock over which it dashes with 
impetuous fury: the precipitous banks are 
skirted with birch and oak. It is called by 
the natives Camiladir, or the strong arch , (i. e. 
of water.) To see it to advantage, we must ap¬ 
proach, by some difficult clambering amongst 
the rocks, to the very bottom of the fall. In 
rainy weather, this mountain stream is here 
truly grand, and furnishes a fine subject for 
the pencil. 

At the summit of the mountain, the scene 
is no less bleak than that of Drymen Muir. 
It is, of late, somewhat relieved by the activity, 
presented at a little distance on the left, of a 
fine slate quarry, commenced, with a favourable 
prospect of success, by the Duke of Montrose. 
But when the opposite valley begins to open, 
with the distant view of Callander, Loch Ven- 
nachar, and Benledi, the prospect becomes, 


198 


at every step, more and more interesting; till, 
at length, the climax of sublimity is completed 
upon attaining the summit of Craig-vad* 


CRAIG-VAD VIEW. 

Perhaps there does not occur in the High¬ 
lands of Scotland a more magnificent view 
than that which presents itself immediately 
when Loch Achray and the Trosachs first 
burst upon the eye. 

Let the stranger, just as he emerges from 
the narrow ravine through which the road 

1 Craig-vud , or Craig-inhad , signifies, in Gaelic, the 
Rock of Wolves , an animal which is known to have ex¬ 
isted, as well as the wild-boar in this country. Were 
we to judge by etymologies, the bear must have also been 
a native of Scotland. The stream which falls by the 
Camiladir is called Altmhengan , or “ the burn of the 
bear.” 



199 


passes, and at the instant that he loses sight 
of Loch-drunkie, (a beautifully little lake, 
finely skirted with oak coppice, which he now 
leaves to the east,) strike up through the 
heath on the right, for a few paces, till he 
reaches the summit; instead of the narrow 
horizon of a few hundred yards which had 
just bounded his view, an immense expanse 
of landscape bursts in upon him at once, ex¬ 
tending at least a hundred miles, from the 
mountains of Glenorchay on the left, to the 
extremity of the Ochills on the right. Ele¬ 
vated more than 1500 feet above the valley, 
he has before him, in bird’s-eye prospect, the 
opening of Loch Katrine, the whole range of 
the Trosachs, from the summit of Benvenue 
to that of Binnan, Loch Achray, as it were, 
under his feet, Glenfinglas, Benledi, Loch 
Yennachar, and the village of Callander. Just 


200 


as he begins to descend, he has a glimpse of 
the summit of Benmore in Braidalbin, a 
mountain 3653 feet high, just peeping out be¬ 
hind the brow of Binnan. 

Every admirer of sublimity will dwell on 
this scene with delight. There can be nothing 
grander in nature. Whatever route the vi¬ 
sitant of the Trosachs has taken, let him not 
persuade himself that he has done enough un¬ 
til he has seen this wonderful scenery from 
the summit of Craig-vad. 

Descending from this eminence, we pass the 
river, if on horseback by a ford, at the beau¬ 
tiful farm of Achray; or, if on foot, by a truly 
Alpine bridge, supported by piles of wood 
driven into the channel of the river, and co¬ 
vered with turf and gravel. Mr Farrington 
made a drawing of this bridge. After travel¬ 
ling for about half a mile along the shore of 


201 


this lovely lake , we enter the Trosachs, as by 
the route from Callander already described. 

It may be here noticed, that Mr Farring¬ 
ton, from a station a few hundred yards above 
the house of Achray, and upon the south-west 
border of the lake, delineated a general view 
of the Trosachs, including the whole extent 
of outline from the summit of Benvenue to 
that of Binnan,—a scene to which no powers 
of description are equal j and the magnificence 
of which is only surpassed by the unrivalled 
grandeur of the prospect from Craig-vad. 

Taking leave now of the scenical beauties 
of these interesting regions, it may be grate¬ 
ful to the lover of natural history, to the anti¬ 
quarian, and to the student of human nature, 
to receive some slight notices on these sub¬ 
jects, so far at least as relates to the district 
which has been under our consideration. 
Should the remarks that are offered be of no 


202 


further use, they may perhaps contribute to 
relieve the languor of a long evening, or of a 
rainy day, at an inn, where no better food for 
the mind can be obtained. 


203 


NATURAL HISTORY. 


Of the minerals of this district, some no¬ 
tice has been taken in describing the Gram¬ 
pian range. Copper ore has been found in 
the parish of Aberfoyle, in the vicinity of 
Gartmore village, and also on the northern 
banks of the river of Duchray, but not in such 
quantity as to encourage the working of it. 
The staple mineral is slate, of which mention 
has already been made. 

If the reader wishes to obtain further in¬ 
formation concerning the mineralogy of this 
region, he will do well to consult the memoir 
presented to the Royal Society of Edinburgh 
by the Reverend Dr Macknight, “ On the 




204 


Mineralogy and Local Scenery of certain Dis¬ 
tricts in the Highlands of Scotland .” 1 


PLANTS. 

There are few regions in Britain which 
present a more fertile field than this to the 
botanist. 

The native woods consist of oak, ash, birch, 
alder, hazel, the trembling poplar, the syca¬ 
more, (perhaps not indigenous,) the moun¬ 
tain-ash, (sorbus aucaparia ,) the holly, the 
bird’s cherry, (prunus padus,) &c. 

The native shrubs are numerous: the juni¬ 
per, broom, furze, (Ulex Europceus,) honey¬ 
suckle, ivy, gale, &c. every where abound. 

1 DrMacknight having this season (1812) explored 
Benlomond, the public may expect further elucidations 
of the natural history of that mountain. 



205 


With regard to the rarer plants,* the glen 
of Leney, near Callander, furnishes a very 
copious collection of vegetables of the Crypto - 
gamia class. In the wood of Carchonzie, on 
the south of the river above Callander, and 
also upon the banks of Upper Lochard, the 
Pyrolci rotundifoha , or little winter green, 
grows plentifully. The Pyrola Secunda has 
been found on a little island in Lochard, 
amidst the ruins of Duke Murdoch’s castle. 
The Lobelia Dortmanna 9 a truly alpine plant, 
is to be found in all the lakes to the north and 
west of the Grampian range, but no where to 
the south of them. That most beautiful of 
British shrubs, the Hypericum Androsccmum , 
or shrub St John’s wort, is to be found spa¬ 
ringly upon the northern shore of Loch Ven- 
nachar; at Ledard, upon Lochard; and in a 


\ Those of Ben-lomond have been already enumerated'. 


1 



206 


small island at the west end of Loch Katrine. 
Whilst the uncommon elegance of its flower 
and leaves recommends it for the shrubbery, 
the ambiguous quality of its berry renders its 
introduction dangerous, wherever its tempt¬ 
ing appearance might induce children to eat 
it. But how much more strongly does this 
objection lie against the cultivation of the So¬ 
larium Dulcamora, the deadly nightshade, 
which is found native at the junction of the 
Forth and Keltie, below Gartmore house. It 
is frequently to be met with in our shrubbe¬ 
ries, though the deleterious quality of its berry 
is well known. 

At Dunira, as has been stated, upon Ben- 
ledi, and in the neighbourhood of Auchin- 
troig, in the parish of Drymen, the Arbutus 
Uva Ursi is found in abundance. The Vac- 
cinium Myrtillus , or blaeberry j the Oxy coccus, 
or cranberry; and the Vitis Idea, occur in 


207 


great profusion. The Vaccmum Uliginosum , 
or, as it is vulgarly called, the berry bearing 
gall, is to be found upon the southern banks 
of Lochard, immediately below the houses of 
Culigartan. 

On the northern side of Benlomond, about 
one-third, or one-half way up, and also upon 
the western shoulder of Benvenue, the Rubus 
Chamcemorus , a species of the bramble, above 
ground a diaecious plant, but having the male 
and female united under the surface, accord¬ 
ing to the observation of Dr Solander, grows 
in such profusion, that its fruit is often pre¬ 
sented at our Highland tables after dinner in 
room of strawberries. The alpine strawberry, 
so much celebrated by Linnaeus as a preven¬ 
tive of the gout, is to be found in considera¬ 
ble plenty along the banks of Loch Katrine, 
and in several places in Aberfoyle. 

In the glen of Glenny, immediately to the 


20S 


north of the Loch of Menteith, the Paris 
Quadrifolia grows profusely. It is not known 
to grow elsewhere in Scotland, except in the 
den of Betliaick, near Perth, and in the braes 
of Cathcart, near Glasgow. Its beautiful 
glossy fruit is more than suspicious. 

On the borders of the island of Inchmaho- 
ma is to be found the Litorella lacustris , af¬ 
fording to the eye of the botanist a wonderful 
instance of the endless diversification of the 
works of Nature, combined with the utmost 
simplicity of design. The Litorella , though 
a diaecious plant, the male growing on one 
stem, and the female on another adjacent to 
it, is, in fact, nothing else than a Plantago , 
a genus whose general character and habits are 
precisely the same, with the sole exception of 
the difference of class. 

On the smaller island in the Loch of Men¬ 
teith, the Lysimamachia Vulgaris , (by no 


209 


means a common plant in this neighbourhood,) 
is to be found. In rowing from Port to Inch- 
mahoma, the Polygonum aquaticum makes a 
fine shew; its scarlet flower, just appearing 
upon the surface, and its broad-leaved stem 
shooting up through nine or ten feet of water, 
give interest to the deep. In this, as in most 
of our Highland lakes, the Isoetes lacustris 
may be found at the bottom. The Scirpus pu~ 
lustris , or great bulrush, also abounds. 

The Trollius Europccus> or globe flower, a 
very specious plant, is very abundant, especi¬ 
ally upon the banks of the Forth. The Sison 
inundatum , a plant which is rather rare, is to 
be found in the Forth, in a deep pool, about 
a mile below Aberfoyle. The Sison Verticil - 
latum is well known to grow only upon the 
west coast of the island. It is abundant upon 
the Firth of Clyde. Some plants of it have 


o 


210 


occurred about Luss, on the western shore of 
Lochlomond. 

The Osmunda Regalis, or royal flowering 
fern, the most elegant, beyond all question, of 
our Cryptogamous plants, is to be found all 
along the northern shores of Lochard. It 
grows in such profusion upon the sides of the 
river that unites Lochcon with Lochard, a 
little beyond a place called Blarushaw, as to 
cover whole acres of ground. 

In the glebe of Aberfoyle may be found the 
Trientalis Europaa , and the Adorn, sparingly t 
the Ni/mphaa Lutea et Alba , or water lily, 
abundant; the Schccnus Albus , the various spe¬ 
cies of Potaenogetons, Vacciniums , and Ericas, 
or heaths. A variety of the Erica vulgarus, 
perfectly white, is sometimes to be met with. 

The Chdidoriium , or celandine, and Ly- 
thrum Salic aria, or willow herb, are to be 
found on Inchmahoma. The Agrimonia Eu - 


211 


patoria grows in the rock, at the opening of 
Upper Lochard. The Clinopodium vulgare 
(not, however, a common plant) grows in the 
glen of Croy, and in one place in Aberfoyle. 
The Parnassia grows rarely, flowering in Au¬ 
gust. The Comarum pulustre , the Gnaphali - 
um dioicum, the Empetrum nigrum , dr crow- 
berry, the Myrica Gale , various species of the 
Asplenium , and of the Lycopodium , abound. 

In the great moss, which stretches with 
little interruption from Gartmore to the vici¬ 
nity of Stirling, that elegant shrub, the An¬ 
dromeda polifolia , is found in plenty. The 
Droseva rotundifolia , or sun-dew, occurs in all 
our mosses, mingled with that shewy but un¬ 
profitable plant, the Anthericum ossifragum , 
or Lancashire asphodel. The Drosera longi- 
folia , a rare plant, occurs in the Gartmore 
moss. 

The Solidago Virgaurea> or golden rod. 


212 


grows in the upper parts of Buchanan, Aber- 
foyle, and Callander, in such profusion as sur¬ 
prises the student of the botanic garden. The 
Circcca lutetiana , or enchanter’s night-shade, 
a very elegant plant, grows plentifully in the 
Trosachs, and about Lochard. 

The Orobus tuberosusy the Cormeil of the 
Highlanders, is to be found in plenty, especi¬ 
ally about the Ledard cascade. The High¬ 
landers consider it as a pectoral, and strength- 
ener of the stomach; and seldom travel with¬ 
out some of it in their pockets. It is of im¬ 
portance to state, on good medical authority, 
that it is a very efficacious cure of that trou¬ 
blesome complaint, the heartburn . 

The Valeriana officinalis , the Angelica Syl - 
testris, Gentiana Centaurium, grow in profu¬ 
sion. The Chenopodium Bonus Henricus was 
found by the writer of these pages in the area 
of Dounc castle. The Athamanta Meurriy or 


213 


bawd-money, a strong aromatic, grows abun¬ 
dantly. The Allium Ursinum , of pungent 
smell and taste, is to be met with in the glen 
of Portend, and on the hill of Downe in Aber- 
foyle. The Anemone Nemorum is one of our 
earliest flowers in spring. It is reckoned per¬ 
nicious to cattle; and it is said that the eating 
of it occasions a disease called the muir-ill. 


ANIMALS. 


With respect to the native animals of this 
district, they are nearly the same with those 
that occur throughout the rest of the High¬ 
lands of Scotland. The very picturesque 
island of Inchmurrin in Lochlomond, the pro¬ 
perty of the Duke of Montrose, of about two 
miles in length by one in breadth, finely wood¬ 
ed, and affording excellent pasture, has been, 
for more than a century past, well stocked 
with fallow deer. The stock, of all ages, upon 
this delightful island, amounts to about 240, 
and furnishes venison, distinguished by its ex- 




21 $ 


eellent taste and flavour. 1 A gamekeeper, with 
his family, reside here in an elegant lodge, 
which is occasionally occupied, in a forenoon’s 
visit, by the duke and duchess, with their par¬ 
ties. 

The island of Inchlonachan, the property 
of Sir James Colquhoun of Luss, Baronet, 
which contains near 2000 yew trees of an¬ 
cient growth, some of them being near three 
feet in diameter, is also well stocked with 
fallow deer. 

In hard winters, when provender is scarce, 
the red deer of the northern forests sometimes 
wander, in quest of food and shelter, as far as 
Glenfinglas, and the heights of Craig-vad. 

The roe is frequent on the skirts of Benve- 
nue, and in the environs of Lochard. When 
Mr Farrington was taking his first drawing, 


> See Agricultural Report of Stirlingshire, p. 304* 



216 


at the opening of Lower Lochard, he had the 
pleasure and surprise of seeing a fine roebuck 
dashing into the lake from the precipice upon 
the south, and swimming across it, carrying his 
head and branching horns above the water. 
Upon his gaining the opposite shore, after 
shaking oft the water with which he was 
drenched, he was lost in a moment in the 
woods that skreen the pass of Aberfoyle. 

Foxes seem to have increased in number 
of late years : this is probably occasioned by 
the increased shelter afforded them by the 
plantations of Buchanan and Gartmore. A 
huntsman is stationed at Aberfoyle, furnish¬ 
ed with a proper pack of hounds* who is con¬ 
stantly employed in guarding the sheep-farm¬ 
ers on the Duke of Montrose’s estate, from 
the depredations of the fox, the martin, the 
pole-cat, and the wild cat, which are here¬ 
abouts very numerous. We have hares, bad- 


217 


gers, weazels, &c. every where. Otters abound 
in our lakes and rivers, committing great ha- 
vock amongst the fish. 

The black eagle has been extirpated, as al¬ 
ready stated, for some time, from the cliffs of 
Benvenue. The osprey, or water eagle, which 
feeds principally on fish, built lately in the 
lofty trees of Inchmahoma, and probably still 
builds occasionally there : she is said to build 
regularly in a small island towards the north 
end of Lochlomond. She is often seen watch¬ 
ing her prey, upon a small rock which rises a 
little above the surface, about the middle of 
Upper Lochard. In winter, all our lakes are 
covered with various species of water-fowl: 
some of the rarer kinds of Colymbi , or divers, 
occur. The wild swan, in its migrations, fre¬ 
quently pays us a visit. Those magnificent 
birds sometimes appear in large flocks, but 
their stay is only for a few hours. Sometimes, 


218 


however, a single pair will linger upon Loch- 
ard for several weeks. 

Falcons, of a highly-esteemed breed, have 
their eyrie in the rock of Auchyle, in the pa¬ 
rish of Port Kitos ; and buzzards abound. 

Black and red game, and partridges, are 
in plenty. The ptarmigan (Tetrao Lugopus, 
Linn.) is generally found in the higher regions 
of the mountains. The white and long-eared 
owl are frequent. The heron, the sea-gull, 
and cormorant, haunt all our lakes. 

With respect to the fish produced in our 
lakes and rivers, it is singular that, in so cir¬ 
cumscribed a district, their qualities, and even 
their species, should vary so much in situa¬ 
tions so little removed from each other. In 
Lochlubnaig alone, as far as is known, the 
Salmo Alpinus , or charr, is to be found. In 
Lochlomond alone, the Salmo Lavarrilus , the 
gwiniad, or powan, occurs. Perches of a 


219 


large size are found in the lake Qf Menteith, 
and in the river Forth, but in none of the other 
lakes, except Lochlomond. Loch Katrine 
abounds in a species of small trout, of a black 
colour, very lean and insipid. It is probable 
that their leanness arises from their vast num-r 
bers, joined to the scarcity of proper food. 
There was, till very lately, neither pike nor 
minnow in the lake. Some years ago, the wri¬ 
ter of these pages suggested to a gentleman, 
who has a property upon its shores, to convey 
some pikes thither from a neighbouring lake. 
He has done so; and some of them have been 
lately seen, which have arrived at a large size. 
They will soon, it is presumed, reduce the over¬ 
stocked population to its proper level: we 
may then expect to find good trout in Loch 
Katrine. It still remains to add some min¬ 
nows. 

The lakes of Menteith, Lochard, Lochcon, 


220 


and Locharclet, have pike and trout, and eels 
of a large size. In Lochard, fishes of 36 lbs. 
weight have been caught. The trout of Loch¬ 
ard and Lochcon are of the same quality with 
those of Lochleven; the flesh is red, and of a 
high flavour. In Lochcon, trouts of 5 lbs. 
weight have been caught. 

Salmon rarely ascend the Forth of late 
years; they appear to be prevented by the 
large quantities of moss-earth which are float¬ 
ed off from Blairdrummond. 

The Coluber Berus, or adder, which is poi¬ 
sonous, and the Anguh Fragilis, or blind 
worm, wdiich is reckoned innocent, are hap¬ 
pily our only serpents. 


221 


SOIL AND CLIMATE OF THIS DIS¬ 
TRICT, &c. 

The soil having been formed, for the most 
part, by the sediment carried down by the 
running waters, and deposited in the plain, 
is light and sharp; and it is generally ob¬ 
served that the harvest is earlier in the vales 
of Callander and Aberfoyle, than in the im¬ 
mediate neighbourhood to the east and south. 

The climate, though rainy, on account of 
the vicinity of the mountains, is extremely 
healthy. Instances of longevity are frequent. 
The grave-digger of Aberfoyle died lately in 
his 102d year, and was able to do his duty 
till within two years of his death. Several 
persons in this neighbourhood have lately 
reached the age of 90, and even of 97, 


In September 1804, died Mr Alexander 
Graham of Brachern, (a property situated 
upon the south-east shoulder of Benlomorid,) 
at the advanced age of 105. This gentleman, 
who retained the faculties of his mind, and 
touch bodily vigour, till within a short time 
of his death, was, by the mother’s side, the 
nephew of Gregor Ghlun Dhu, and the grand 
nephew of the celebrated Rob Roy of Craiig- 
rostan. About two years before his death he 
related a circumstance to the writer of these 
pages, which seems, in a medical point of 
view, to merit record. 

When a lad of about eighteen, he went td 
visit his grand uncle, who resided near the 
church of Balquhidder. It was in summer; 
he felt himself oppressed on his journey with 
sickness, accompanied by a burning heat. He 
sought relief, from time to time, by bathing 
in every river and lake that he met with on 


223 


his way; at length he reached his uncle’s 
house. But so intolerable was the heat which 
he endured, that he got up several times du¬ 
ring the night and bathed in Lochvoil. Still 
the fever continued without abatement; and 
next day, “ being unable,” to use his own ex¬ 
pression, c< to bear the merriment that was 
going on in his uncle’s house,” he set off on 
his return home, still plunging into every lake 
and stream that he met with to allay the heat 
which oppressed him. He was able, however, 
to proceed no farther than Inversnaid, where 
he betook himself to bed in the house of a 
friend. His distemper proved to be the small¬ 
pox, which, from the process he had under¬ 
gone, he had in the mildest form, and was 
soon well. If any medical person, of a mo¬ 
derate enlargement of mind, had got hold of 
this fact at the time, it must have at once sug¬ 
gested the adoption of the cooling regimen in 


224 


that loathsome disease, half a century before 
it was brought into use, and many valuable 
lives might have been rescued from the stew¬ 
ing system, which has but lately been laid 
aside. 

On account of the precariousness of the cli¬ 
mate, the natives of this district have, from 
necessity, become adepts in presaging the 
changes of the weather. Benlomond is their 
barometer: the different phases which the 
mountain assumes, are reckoned certain in¬ 
dications of rain or drought. When, from 
the prevalence of dry vapours in the atmo¬ 
sphere, the outlines of the mountain, and of 
its scenery, are seen faintly, and as at a great 
distance, fair weather is portended. When, 
again, the atmosphere appears highly trans¬ 
parent, and Benlomond is seen magnified in 
its dimensions, and the objects on its surface 

approximated beyond their just limits, rain is 

2 


225 


expected with certainty within twenty-four 
hours. 


MANNERS, CHARACTER, &c. OF 
THE PEOPLE. 

Having offered the preceding sketches of 
the scenery and natural history of this very 
interesting district, it may now be permitted 
to present a few traits of the distinguishing 
manners and character of the inhabitants. 

The territory on the north and west of the 
Grampian range, where the scenery that has 
been described principally lies, is not more 
distinguished from the low country by its ex¬ 
ternal appearance and productions, than the 
inhabitants of each formerly were, and still, 
in some measure, are, by their language, cha¬ 
racter, and manners. But these distinctions 
p 


226 


are fast wearing away, and the character of 
the Highlander is rapidly assimilating itself 
to that oFhis neighbours on the south and east; 
the introduction of arts and industry, and es¬ 
pecially the general diffusion of knowledge, 
have of late produced a great change in the 
habits of the natives of this district; and as it 
is probable that in a few years, that which is 
now matter of observation will depend only 
on record, or vague tradition, it seems the 
more necessary, therefore, upon this occasion, 
to delineate some of the leading features in the 
picture, whilst it is yet in our power to trace 
them. 

The language chiefly spoken in this dis¬ 
trict is the Gaelic , or a dialect of the ancient 
Celtic; a language which, though now confined 
to a few of the most remote and inaccessible 
corners of Europe, appears to have prevailed in 
former times from the pillars of Hercules to the 


227 


northern extremity of Scotland. In the ages 
and countries where this language prevailed, 
abstract speculations were indeed little exer¬ 
cised. But the simple feelings of an unre¬ 
fined mind, and, above all, the aspect of exter¬ 
nal mind,—the objects which present them¬ 
selves to the eye and to the ear, had their 
expressive and appropriate denominations; 
so that there is perhaps no language so well 
calculated to express external appearance and 
scenery as the Gaelic. Of this the mere Eng¬ 
lish reader may be in some degree satisfied, 
even from the translation of Ossian’s Poems, 
far short as it is of the original. 

It must occur to the lover of antiquities as 
a subject of regret, that this ancient language 
is now hastening towards extinction in every 
country where it has been spoken. The Cor¬ 
nish is now for ever lost; the Welch and 
Gaelic are banished far beyond their ancient 


228 


limits, and are, by frequent commerce with 
the low country, giving way, with hasty steps, 
to the language of the rest of the island. 

The bulk of the Highlands now understand 
English; and by many, both languages are 
spoken with equal facility. It is true, that 
from the intermixture of idioms, the dialect 
in either of them becomes corrupt j but per¬ 
haps, what is lost in elegance of expression, is 
gained in acuteness of thinking. The High¬ 
lander, thus possessed of two languages, is 
naturally led to compare modes of expression, 
to trace analogies in grammar, and to increase 
his stock of ideas, in a manner which might 
seem the effect of an acquaintance with the 
general principles of language, derived from 
a liberal education. 

The ancient Highland dress is general¬ 
ly worn: the people have still a very strong 
attachment to the habit of their forefathers; 


229 


it was with extreme impatience that they bore 
the degrading prohibition of its use, which 
had been imposed by the legislature; and they 
naturally consider the boon of its removal as 
enhanced by its having been obtained by the 
interference of a chieftain of their own race.* 
With regard to the general character of 
the Highlanders, as we find it exhibited here, 
as well as in the remoter districts of the coun¬ 
try, it may be remarked, that they are a grave 
and intelligent people; of a turn of mind pe¬ 
culiarly inquisitive, and susceptible of im¬ 
provement from education. This spirit of cu¬ 
riosity for which the Highlander is remarka¬ 
ble, and the consequent information which he 
is generally found to possess, with regard to 
distant places and events, may be partly, at 
least, attributed to that expansion of mind 


1 The present Duke of Montrose. 



230 


which he naturally acquires from a rambling 
and excursive mode of life. While the farm¬ 
er or labourer in the low country is apt to 
have his mind shackled, and his faculties nar¬ 
rowed, by the habit of circumscribing his 
whole view r s, and hopes, and fears, to the di¬ 
minutive spot which he occupies, the High¬ 
lander is generally employed in traversing 
vast tracts of country, where he has daily op¬ 
portunities of contemplating nature upon the 
most extensive scale. 

To the same circumstance, it would seem, 
we are to attribute another feature which has 
been remarked in this race of men. Without 
any appearance of unhappiness, their minds 
appear to be generally tinged with a slight 
dash of melancholy; which, however, is far 
from being of the morose kind, or such as 
produces any thing like misanthropy. The 
melancholy of the Highlander seems rather 


231 


to be a habit of mind produced by the com¬ 
bined effects of sensibility, solitude, and the 
habitual contemplation of wild and sublime 
scenery. Little employed in cultivating the 
ground, his mind is not fettered by a minute 
attention to a single spot; the range of his 
excursions is wide, but it is lonely. In tend¬ 
ing his flocks, he scales the lofty mountain, 
and traverses the extensive moor, or dusky 
forest. In the perambulations of a whole day, 
he may not have an opportunity of seeing 
6i the human face divine ; v or if he meets with 
a brother shepherd, the subject of their talk, 
in their short interview, generally consists of 
the disasters of the day, the presages of the 
weather, a dream of horror, or an adventure 
with a ghost. 

Besides it may be observed, that the pros¬ 
pects which perpetually engage the eye of the 
Highlander, of barren heaths, lofty moirn- 

CD 


232 


tains, rugged precipices, and wide-stretched 
lakes, have a natural tendency to call forth 
sentiments of sublimity, which are unfavour¬ 
able to frivolousness of thought. The High¬ 
lander has occasion, from time to time, to 
contemplate the grandest objects of nature; 
the war of the elements $ the impetuous tor¬ 
rent, sweeping every thing before it; the thun¬ 
der of heaven, reverberating in repeated peals 
among the mountains; the violence of the 
winds, rendered furious by being pent up in 
a deep and narrow valley; and snow coiled 
up in heaps, that interrupt for weeks the in¬ 
tercourse of a whole district. All these are 
circumstances which are well calculated to fix 
down the mind to habits of sober thinking, 
and to impress it with serious meditation on 
the vicissitudes of human affairs. 

Notwithstanding this general character, of 
what may be styled pensive susceptibility, 

X 


233 


which belongs to the Highlander, he is in the 
highest degree alive to joyous feelings. The 
Highlanders are fond of music and of dan¬ 
cing, with diversions of all kinds. In ancient 
times, when the hospitality of the chieftain 
furnished subsistence to his numerous depend¬ 
ants, it is in the memory of persons still alive, 
and still more particularly in the traditions of 
the generation last passed, that the whole oc¬ 
cupation of the long winter nights was to listen 
to the recitation of the poetry of Ullin, of Os- 
sian, of Carril, &c. The Clanranald family, it is 
well known, had their bards, thus regularly 
appointed and employed, till within little more 
than half a century past; and even private in¬ 
dividuals piqued themselves, till within these 
very few years, on reciting considerable por¬ 
tions of this ancient poetry- Robert Macniel, 
an old man still living in this district, can yet 
recite the long poem which records the inva- 


234 


sion of Manos, King of Loclilin, and his re 
pulse by Fingal. Sarah MacLachlane, still 
living here, can recite the poem called Bas 
Fhraoich, which was translated by Jerome 
Stone, almost word for word as it is given by 
Henry Mackenzie, Esq. in the Report on 
the Poems of Ossian. 

The music of the Highlanders is congenial 
with their general habits and character. It 
is, for the most part, not only plaintive, but 
even melancholy. Laments , as they are call¬ 
ed, or funeral dirges, constitute a very im¬ 
portant and favourite branch of Highland 
music. They have some exquisite airs, chief¬ 
ly in this style of melancholy ; and perhaps 
there are few who will not admit the pathos 
of 6i MacGregor a Ruaro” “ Cuir a chean 
“ dilis” and others, which could be easily 
mentioned. The bagpipe, to which the High- 
fonder feels an almost instinctive attachment, 


235 


is well calculated for this style of melody: the 
great bagpipe, when played in the fields, 
produces a fine effect in a stijl evening, by the 
reverberation of the tones from the mountains 
and glens. 

The Highlanders, like every other people 
in the early stages of society, are remarkable 
for their hospitality: from their eagerness to 
be informed, as well as to entertain, there are 
none who rejoice more heartily at the ap¬ 
proach of a stranger. 

The Highlander, at home, is indolent. It 
is with impatience that he allows himself to be 
diverted from his favourite occupation of tra¬ 
versing the mountains and moors, in looking 
after his flocks, a few days in spring and au¬ 
tumn, for the purposes of his narrow scheme 
of agriculture, It is remarked, however, that 
the Highlander, when removed beyond his 


230 


native bounds, is found capable of abundant 
exertion and industry. 

The Highlanders are naturally a brave and 
generous people, and impatient of being out¬ 
done by others in any attempt. They are 
able to endure fatigue, and hunger, and thirst, 
and heat, and cold, beyond what is credible 
by those who have been accustomed to the 
softer modes of live. They are the best sol¬ 
diers in the world. From them, it is well 
known, our armies have, for more than half 
a century, received their choicest supplies; 
and it will not be denied, that their valour 
has had a distinguished share, in raising some 
of the most illustrious trophies that grace the 
military annals of Britain. 

Whilst the inhabitants of the district, 
which it has now been attempted to describe, 
are affected, in common with the other na- 


23*7 


tives of the Highlands, by the circumstances 
which have been mentioned, it must, at the 
same time, be observed, that accidental and 
local circumstances, peculiar to themselves, 
have had some effect in discriminating them 
from their neighbours. 

In former times, those parts of this region 
which are situated beyond the Grampian 
range, were rendered almost inaccessible, by 
strong barriers of rocks and mountains and 
lakes. It was a border country ; and though 
on the very verge of the low country, it was 
almost totally sequestered from the world, 
and, as it were, insulated with respect to so¬ 
ciety. 

It is well known that in the Highlands, itr 
was, in former times, accounted not only law¬ 
ful, but honourable, among hostile tribes, to 
commit depredations upon each other: and 
these habits of the age were perhaps strength- 


238 


ened in this district by the circumstances 
which have been mentioned. It bordered on 
a country, the inhabitants of which, while they 
were richer, were less warlike than they, and 
differed widely in language and manners. 

The tract of country which has been de¬ 
scribed, appears, however, to have enjoyed a 
considerable degree of tranquillity till about 
the year 1746. At that time it became in¬ 
fested with a lawless band of depredators, 
whose fortunes had been rendered desperate 
by the events of 1745, and whose habits had 
become incompatible with a life of sobriety 
and honesty. These banditti consisted chiefly 
of emigrants from Lochaber, and the remoter 
parts of the Highlands. 

They seem to have made choice of this 
quarter for their principal resort; both upon 
account of the easy access which is afforded 
to the low country, and of the secure re- 


239 


treat which it furnished to them on their 
return. In the strongholds above the passes 
of this district, they led a rambling and licen¬ 
tious life. In convenient spots, they erected 
temporary huts, where they met, from time 
to time, and regaled themselves at the ex¬ 
pence of the peaceable and defenceless inha¬ 
bitants. The ruins of these huts are still to 
be seen in the woods. They laid the coun¬ 
try under contribution; and whenever any 
individual was so unfortunate as to incur their 
resentment, he might lay his account with 
having his cattle carried off before morning; 
and was obliged to redeem them at whatever 
price the plunderers were pleased to stipulate. 

The exertions of the inhabitants, aided by 
the military stationed at Inversnaid, was found 
insufficient to exterminate this nest of villains. 
This district principally owes the suppression 
of them, and its consequent tranquillity, to the. 


240 


wisdom and activity of an individual, the late 
Nicol Graham, of Gartmore, Esq. He had 
been originally bred to the bar; and to a skill 
in general jurisprudence, he joined a pro¬ 
found knowledge of the particular interests of 
the Highlands of Scotland. This was indeed a 
subject to which he had turned his attention at 
an early period of life; and the important 
hints which were suggested by him, u con- 
“ cerning the improvement and civilization of 
“ the Highlands,” not only procured him the 
correspondence and friendship of the minis¬ 
ter, Sir Robert Walpole, but they were ac¬ 
tually adopted, in some measure, in the sub¬ 
sequent arrangements. By his exertions, in 
co-operation with General Churchill, the com¬ 
mander in chief in Scotland, and with the 
law officers of the crown, very effectual mea¬ 
sures were taken to restore tranquillity to the 
country. 


3 


241 


Mr Graham, from his intimate knowledge 
of the country, was enabled to trace the de¬ 
predators through all their haunts; and he 
drove them, by degrees, from all their strong¬ 
holds. The ringleaders were apprehended; 
some of them were executed; others were ba¬ 
nished; and some, who gave hopes of their 
leading a more inoffensive life for the future, 
were permitted to pass the remainder of their 
lives in peace. 1 

To these exertions of public-spirited indi¬ 
viduals, and, above all, to the act of 1748, by 
which the feudal jurisdiction was abolished, 


1 The author has seen a curious collection of papers, 
containing at large the particulars here stated, in the li¬ 
brary at Gartmore. They are entitled Thief-papers. 
These very curious documents of the disturbed condi¬ 
tion of this district, at that period, have been lately hand¬ 
ed to a gentleman who will one day, unquestionably, 
turn them to a very amusing poetical use. 

Q 



242 


the present tranquillity and prosperity of the 
Highlands are doubtless to be attributed. 
The great bond of union between the supe¬ 
rior and his vassals is dissolved; and they are 
no longer liable to be called forth to minister 
to his avarice or revenge; nor do they any 
longer depend on his bounty for their subsist¬ 
ence. The jurisdiction of the chief over his 
clan is now superseded by the wholesome re¬ 
gulations of a more general police. Every in¬ 
dividual now feels himself to stand alone, and 
is obliged, by honest industry and subordina¬ 
tion to the laws, to provide for his family, and 
to seek the protection of a regular govern¬ 
ment. 

In consequence of these laws, by which the 
Highlanders have been subjected to the same 
forms of police with the rest of the inhabit^ 
ants of the island, a change of manners has 
taken place amongst them, so rapid, and so 


243 


considerable, as to be almost beyond the be- 
lief of those who have not had an opportuni¬ 
ty of remarking the contrast. The inhabit¬ 
ants of this country are a peaceable and ho¬ 
nest race of men; and are generally capable 
of a considerable degree of industry, espe¬ 
cially when they remove, as they are fre¬ 
quently obliged to do, by the enlargement of 
the sheep-farms, into the manufacturing towns^ 
and villages. 


SUPERSTITIONS OF THE HIGH¬ 
LANDERS. 

Before quitting this scene, rendered im* 
portant to the naturalist, by the commence¬ 
ment of a new field of research, and to the 
student of human nature, by an exhibition 
of character and manners, which is now pe- 


244? 


culiar to a very limited sphere of observation, 
it may be interesting to obtain some slight 
notices of the superstitions of the Highland¬ 
ers ; in so far, at least, as they are found cur¬ 
rent in the region which has been described. 

The superstitious opinions of the ancient 
Highlanders seem to have borrowed their 
tone, in a great measure, from the nature of 
the country which they inhabited. Living, as 
they did, amongst dreary wastes and rugged 
mountains, their progress from one place to 
another, impeded frequently by the rapid tor¬ 
rent, or wide-stretched lake; often, in their 
journeys, sinking under the pressure of fa¬ 
tigue and hunger, or borne down by the ri¬ 
gours of an inclement sky; their imaginations 
were naturally led to ascribe every disaster to 
the influence of superior powers, in whose 
character the predominating feature necessa¬ 
rily was malignity towards the human race. 


245 


Every lake had its kelpie, or water horse, 
often seen by the shepherd, as he sat in a 
summer’s evening upon the brow of a rock, 
dashing along the surface of the deep, or 
browsing on the pasture-ground upon its 
verge. 1 Often did this malignant genius of 
the waters allure women and children to his 
subaqueous haunts, there to be immediately 
devoured. Often did he also swell the torrent 
or lake beyond its usual limits, to overwhelm 
the hapless traveller in the flood. 

Of the Urisks something has been said al¬ 
ready. They were supposed to be of a con¬ 
dition somewhat intermediate, between that 
of mortal men and spirits. They were gene- 


x So far this opinion of the Highlanders, concerning 
the kelpie, corresponds exactly with the accounts given 
by Bruce and Sparrman of the hippopotamus, which cer¬ 
tainly, however, never existed in this country. 



246 


rally inclined to mischief; but, by kind treat¬ 
ment, were often prevailed on to be very ser¬ 
viceable to the family which they haunted; 
and by which they were accordingly consi¬ 
dered as an acquisition. Their grand ren¬ 
dezvous, as has been stated, was in Benve- 
nue; Coire-nan-Uriskin merits the notice 
of the traveller besides, for its magnificent 
scenery. 

But the most beautiful and perfect branch 
of Highland mythology, which is to this day 
retained in some degree of purity, is that 
which relates to the Daoine Shith , or Shi\ 
(men of peace) or, as they are sometimes sty¬ 
led, Daoine matha , (good men) apparently in 
order to propitiate their favour; on the same 
principle that the furies were called Eumeni- 
des by the Greeks. 

The mythology of the Daoine Shi’, though 
generally considered as corresponding to that 


247 


of the fairies of England, and perhaps too of 
the orientals, ought, as it should seem, to be 
regarded as very different in many important 
particulars. These will be best understood 
and appreciated by a short description. 

The Daoine Shi’, or men of peace, of the 
Highlanders, differ essentially from the fairies 
of Shakespear, who, indeed, produced the 
wonderful mythology of the “ The Midsum¬ 
mer Night’s Dream” from his own most crea¬ 
tive imagination. 

Leaving it to others to institute the com¬ 
parison, let it suffice to state a few of the par¬ 
ticulars of the Celtic superstition on this sub¬ 
ject. 

The Daoine Shi’, or men of peace, the 
fairies of the Highlanders, though not abso¬ 
lutely malevolent, are believed to be a peevish 
repining race of beings, who, possessing them 
selves but a scanty portion of happiness, are 


248 


supposed to envy mankind their more com¬ 
plete and substantial enjoyments. They are 
supposed to enjoy, in their subterraneous re¬ 
cesses, a sort of shadowy happiness, a tinsel 
grandeur, which, however, they would wil¬ 
lingly exchange for the more solid joys of 
mortals. 

The men of peace are believed to be always 
dressed in green; and are supposed to take 
offence, when any of mortal race presume to 
wear their favourite colour. 1 The celebrated 
Viscount of Dundee was dressed in green, 
when he commanded at the battle of Killi- 


1 Green was probably the appropriate dress of the dm* 
idical order. In the poem of Conn, the son of Dargo, 
(who is styled the Druid of Bel,) published by Dr Smith, 
in his Seandana, we read, that in the battle with the Fin- 
gallians, which, according to tradition, finally decided 
the fortunes of the druidical order, their standard was 
green. 


7 



349 


crankie; and to this circumstance the High¬ 
landers ascribe the disastrous event of that 
day. It is still accounted peculiarly ominous 
to any person of his name, to assume this sa¬ 
cred colour. 

They are believed to inhabit certain round 
grassy eminences, where they celebrate their 
nocturnal festivities by the light of the moon. 
About a mile beyond the source of the Forth, 
above Lochcon, there is a place called Coir - 
shi’ an , or the cove of the men of peace , which 
is still supposed to be a favourite place of 
their residence. In the neighbourhood, are 
to be seen many round, conical eminences ; 
particularly one near the head of the lake, by 
the skirts of which many are still afraid to 
pass after stn-set. It is believed, that if, on 
Hallow-eve, 1 any person goes alone round 

1 The Samh-in , or fire ofi peace , of the Highlanders; 
a solemn season appointed for the administration of jus- 



250 


one of these hills nine times, towards the left 
hand, (sinistrorsum) a door shall open, by 
which he will be admitted into their subter¬ 
raneous abodes. Many, it is said, of mortal 
race, have been entertained in their secret re¬ 
cesses. There, they have been received into 
the most splendid apartments, and regaled 
with the most sumptuous banquets and deli¬ 
cious wines. Their females surpass the daugh¬ 
ters of men in beauty; the seemingly happy 
inhabitants pass their time in festivity, and in 
dancing to notes of the softest music. But 
unhappy is the mortal who joins in their joys, 
or ventures to partake of their dainties. By 
this indulgence, he forfeits for ever the soci- 


tice by the Druids, (the men of peace,) when they met 
the people on these round hills, or laws ; and the occa¬ 
sion was solemnized by kindling fires, and perhaps by of¬ 
fering sacrifices, on these eminences. 



251 


ety of men, and is bound down irrevocably 
to the condition of a Shi’ich, or man of peace. 

“ A woman,” as is reported in Highland 
tradition, “ was conveyed in days of yore, into 
“ the secret recesses of the men of peace. 
66 There she was recognized by one who had 
66 formerly been an ordinary mortal, but who 
“ had, by some fatality, become associated 
“ with the Shi’ichs. This acquaintance, still 
“ retaining some portion of human benevo- 
66 lence, warned her of her danger; and coun- 
<c selled her, as she valued her liberty, to ab- 
i( stain from eating or drinking with them 
“ for a certain space of time. She complied 
“ with the counsel of her friend ^ and when 
« the period assigned was elapsed, she found 
66 herself again upon earth, restored to the so- 
(e ciety of mortals. It is added, that when she 
<c had examined the viands which had been 
presented to her, and which had appeared 


252 


« so tempting to the eye, they were found, 
“ now that the enchantment had been re- 
“ moved, to consist only of the refuse of the 
“ earth.” 


That there have been instances of persons 
who have been released from Fairy-land, and 
restored to the society of mortals, is very ge¬ 
nerally believed. Mr Scott’s story of Ethert 
Brand, so exquisitely told in the fourth Canto 
of the Lady of the Lake, is one. His intre¬ 
pid sister was the instrument of his deliver¬ 
ance : 


“ She crossed him thrice, that lady bold : 

He rose beneath her hand, 

The fairest knight on Scottish mold. 

Her brother, Ethert Brand !” 



253 


We have, in recent tradition, a story near¬ 
ly similar, except in its unfortunate catas¬ 
trophe. 

The Reverend Robert Kirk, the first trans¬ 
lator of the Psalms into Gaelic verse, had for¬ 
merly been minister at Balquidder; and died 
minister of Aberfoyle in 1688, at the early 
age of 42. His grave-stone, which may be 
seen near the east end of the church of Aber¬ 
foyle, bears this inscription: 

Robertas Kirk, A. M. Linguae Hibemii, (c) ce bumen, 
obiit, &c. 

He was walking, it is said, one evening in his 
night-gown, upon the little eminence to the 
west of the present manse, which is still reck¬ 
oned a Dun shi He fell down dead, as was 
believed; but this was not his fate: 

“ It was between the night and day, 

When the fairy king has power, 


25* 


That he sunk down (but not) in sinful fray, 

And, ’twixt life and death, was snatched away, 
To the joyless Elfin bower.” 

Mr Kirk was the near relation of Graham 
of Duchray, the ancestor of the present Ge¬ 
neral Graham Stirling. Shortly after his fu¬ 
neral, he appeared in the dress in which he 
had sunk down, to a mutual relation of his 
own and of Duchray. “ Go/’ said he to him, 
“ to my cousin Duchray, and tell him that I 
“ am not dead; I fell down in a swoon, and 
" was carried into Fairy-land, where I now 
“ am. Tell him, that when he and my friends 
<£ are assembled at the baptism of my child, 
“ (for he had left his wife pregnant) I will ap- 
u pear in the room, and that if he throws the 
66 knife which he holds in his hand over my 
“ head, I will be released, and restored to hu- 
“ man society.” The man, it seems, neglect¬ 
ed, for some time, to deliver the message. Mr 


555 


Kirk appeared to him a second time, threat¬ 
ening to haiint him night and day till he exe¬ 
cuted his commission, which, at length, he 
did. The time of the baptism arrived. They 
were seated at table; Mr Kirk entered, but 
the laird of Duchray, by some unaccountable 
fatality, neglected to perform the prescribed 
ceremony. Mr Kirk retired by another door, 
and was seen no more. It is firmly believed 
that he is, at this day, in Fairy-land. 

One other legend, in a similar strain, lately 
communicated by a very intelligent young la¬ 
dy, is given, principally because it furnishes 
an opportunity of pursuing an ingenious idea 
suggested by Mr Scott, in one of his learned 
notes to the Lady of the Lake. 

66 A young man roaming one day through 
“ the forest, observed a number of persons, all 
66 dressed in green, issuing from one of those 
u round eminences which are commonly ac- 


256 


“ counted fairy hills. Each of them, in suc- 
“ cession, called upon a person by name, to 
“fetch his horse . A caparisoned steed in- 
“ stantly appeared; they all mounted, and sal- 
“ lied forth into the regions of air. The 
“ young man, like Ali Baba in the Arabian 
" Nights, ventured to pronounce the same 
“ name, and called for his horse. The steed 
“ immediately appeared; he mounted, and 
“ was soon joined to the fairy choir. He re- 
“ mained with them for a year, going about 
66 with them to fairs and weddings, and feast- 
ing, though unseen by mortal eyes, on the 
<6 victuals that were exhibited on those occa- 
<c sions. They had, one day, gone to a wed- 
“ ding, where the cheer was abundant. Du- 
<( ring the feast, the bridegroom sneezed . The 
“ young man, according to the usual custom, 
<6 said, “ God bless you.” The fairies were 
“ offended at the pronunciation of the sacred 


257 


et name, and assured him, that if he dared to 
“ repeat it, they would punish him. The 
“ bridegroom sneezed a second time. He re- 
" peated his blessing; they threatened more 
“ tremendous vengeance. He sneezed a third 
66 time ; he blessed him as before. The fairies 
€C were enraged; they tumbled him from a 
“ precipice; but he found himself unhurt, 
“ and was restored to the society of mortals.” 

Mr Scott, in Note XI. to Canto IV. after 
having remarked that 6C one of these stories, 
“ now translated from popular Gaelic tradi- 
<c tion, is to be found in the Olia Imperialia 
u of Gervase of Tilbury,” adds, that 66 a work 
66 of great interest might be compiled upon 
“ the origin of popular fiction, and the trans- 
“ mission of similar tales (and customs) from 
“ age to age, and from country to country.” 

As a small contribution to a design, the 
proper execution of which might throw light 

it 


258 


upon the history of the human mind, the fol¬ 
lowing observations are offered upon the an¬ 
tiquity and universality of blessing a person 
when he sneezes. 

The practice of this custom is mentioned 
by Apuleius, in his Metamorphosis of the Gol¬ 
den Ass. 

In the Greek Antliologia, a collection of 
very great antiquity, this custom is recorded 
in a verse which speaks cf the withholding of 
this blessing by an evil-minded person: 

—- — ’Ovde Myet, (ru<rov lecv tt rot^y\. 

Lib. II. § so; Hvredst c. 

-“ Nor does he say, Jupiter save him, if he should 

sneeze.” 

In the seventeenth book of the Odyssey of 
Homer, we find Penelope, led by the account 
which Eumenus had given of a stranger that 
had just arrived, to entertain some hopes of 


259 


the return of Ulysses, she expresses her ex¬ 
pectations, when her son Telemachus sneezes 
aloud. Penelope, auguring favourably from 
this omen, smiles, and gives orders to con¬ 
duct the stranger to the palace. “ Dost thou 
“ not see,” said she to Eumenus, “ that my 
son has sneezed at every word ; speedy de- 
i6 struction awaits the wooers.” 

Let it suffice to add, that this appears also 
to be an oriental rite; and probably transmit¬ 
ted along with the druidical superstitions. In 
the Voyage de Siam of Pere Tachard, abrid¬ 
ged by Le Clerk in his Bibliotheque Univer - 
selle de VAnne e, 1687? we have a not inelegant 
mythology on this subject. 66 The Siamese,” 
says he <c believe, that in the other world, 
« there is an angel whose name is Prayom - 
“ paban , who has a book before him, in which 
“ the life of every individual upon earth is 
“ written; he is incessantly employed in read- 


260 


“ing this book ; and when he arrives at the 
“ page which contains the history of any par- 
** ticular person, that person infallibly sneezes. 
“ This, say the Siamese, is the reason why 
“ we sneeze upon earth ; and that we use to 
66 wish a long and happy life to those who 
“ sneeze.” 


Before we proceed farther in this account 
of the still prevalent superstition of the 
Daoine Shi*, it may be observed, that it evi¬ 
dently appears to be founded on the history 
and fate of the druidical order, who former¬ 
ly, in matters civil and ecclesiastical, held 
the supreme sway in Celtic Europe. 1 That 
this hierarchy existed in Scotland, can be 


1 Mr Scott, in Note VII. to Canto IV. of the Lady of 
the Lake, expresses his dissent from this theory. After 




261 


proved satisfactorily from other sources; but 
it is presumed, that to an inquiring mind, 
the still remaining traces of this superstition 
of the Daoine Shi*, or men of peace, will 


having done the author of these Sketches the honour to 
say, that he, “ in an entertaining work upon the sce- 
“ nery of the Perthshire Highlands, already frequently 
(t quoted, has recorded, with great accuracy, the peculiar 
te tenets held by the Highlanders on this topic, in the vi- 
“ cinity of Loch Katrine,” he adds, u The learned author 
“ is inclined to deduce the whole mythology from the 
“ druidical system, an opinion to which there are many 
“ objections 

Without presuming to provoke a controversy with Mr 
Scott on the subject, the author may be permitted to re¬ 
tain his theory, until objections sufficiently valid are ad¬ 
vanced. The more he considers it, the more probable it 
appears to him that the Celts, with their language and 
religious institutions, were of oriental descent ; that the 
Druids, as Pliny hints, were the magi of the east, and 
that the Fairy-land of the Highlanders is borrowed from 
an analogous oriental superstition. 



262 


furnish the best evidence of their identity 
with the ancient Druids, as well as the best 
documents that can now be obtained, of the 
particular tenets of a system of worship, 
whose essence was secrecy, and the know¬ 
ledge of which has been buried w r ith the ex¬ 
tinction of the order who professed it. In 
whatever way, however, this opinion may be 
now estimated, it may be permitted to sug¬ 
gest, that it is by no means improbable, that 
in the slight sketch which is here offered of a 
mythology which is daily losing ground, the 
principal features of the polity and doctrines 
of this ancient and powerful, though, in ma¬ 
ny respects, horrible hierarchy, will, one day, 
be clearly recognized. 

Even in the little legends which have been 
given, degraded as they are by many puerile 
extravagancies, may we not recognize some 
traits of the druidical institutions, which they 


263 


so studiously concealed ? May we not trace 
in them something of the mode by which the 
Druids procured the necessary supply of 
members for their order ? May we not trace 
in them the period of the noviciate of the dis¬ 
ciples, which, when it had elapsed, fixed their 
condition irrevocably, as well as the general 
reluctance which must have been felt by young 
persons of either sex, to seclude themselves for 
ever from the gaieties of the world, and to de¬ 
vote themselves to retirement and a course of 
painful studies ? 

The Shi’ichs, or men of peace, are still uni¬ 
versally believed to carry off, into their secret 
recesses, new-born children, and women in 
childbed ; and accordingly care is always ta¬ 
ken that women, in these circumstances, shall 
never be left for a moment alone, till the 
child is baptized, when the power of the 


264 


Shi’ichs, with regard to them., is supposed to 
cease. 

Is it not probable that this superstition is 
founded on the circumstance, that the Druids, 
after the overthrow of their hierarchy, would 
be naturally led to endeavour, by such prac¬ 
tices, to maintain the existence of their order ? 
That, having retreated to caves, and deep re¬ 
cesses of the forest, such as the Shi’ichs are 
still believed to occupy, they should embrace 
every opportunity of strengthening, by such 
accessions, their sinking interests ? 

Accordingly; we have the best grounds from 
history to conclude, that the Druids were ena¬ 
bled, by such practices, to maintain some 
traces of their order, for many centuries after 
its great catastrophe $ and that some indivi¬ 
duals of the Druids were to be found, as far 
down as the sixth century, in the retinue of 


265 


the princes and great men, who had not yet 
been converted to Christianity. In Adom- 
nan’s Life of St Columba, we read of the wo- 
cidruidi, (or sons of the Druids,) in Scotland; 
and in the same work, we are informed, 
<c That the saint was interrupted at the castle 
<c of the king, in the discharge of his religious 
ee offices, by certain magi and it must be 
observed, that this term magi is the same that 
is employed by Pliny, to denominate the or¬ 
der of the Druids. 

It is probable that the above incident is the 
same which is related in an ancient Gaelic 
MS. (No. IV.) now in the possession of the 
Highland Society of Scotland, and noticed in 
the Appendix to the Report on the Poems of 
Ossian, p. 310. From that MS., which is con¬ 
sidered as of the 12th or 13th century, the 
following passage is extracted : 

“ After this, St Columba went upon a time 
8 


266 


66 to the king of the Piets, namely, Bruidhi, 
“ son of Milchu, and the gate of the castle 
was shut against him; but the iron locks of 
“ the town opened instantly, through the 
“ prayers of Columb Cille. Then came the 
Ci son of the king, to wit, Maelchu, and his 
“ Druid, to argue keenly against Columb 
66 Cille, in support of paganism.” 

The practice of the Shi’ichs, of carrying 
off children, and women recently delivered, is 
illustrated by the following tradition: “ A 
“ woman, whose new-born child had been 
(( conveyed by them into their secret abodes, 
<c was also carried thither herself, to remain, 
<( however, only until she should suckle her 
<fi infant. She one day, during this period, 
66 observed the Shi’ichs busily employed in 
“ mixing various ingredients in a boiling 
“ cauldron ; and as soon as the composition 
“ was prepared, she remarked that they all 


267 


tf carefully anointed their eyes, with it, laying 
4 the remainder aside for future use. In a 
4 moment when they were all absent, she also 
4 attempted to anoint her eyes with the pre- 

* cious drug, but had time to apply it to one 
e eye only, when the Daoine Shi returned. 
4 But with that eye, she was henceforth ena- 
4 bled to see every thing as it really passed, 
4 in their secret abodes; she saw every ob- 
4 ject, not as she hitherto had done, in decep- 

* tive splendour and elegance, but in its ge- 
4 nuine colours and form. The gaudy orna- 
6 ments of the apartment were reduced to the 
6 naked walls of a gloomy cavern. Soon af- 
< ter, having discharged her office, she was 
6 dismissed to her own home. Still, howe- 
s ver, she retained the faculty of seeing with 
s her medicated eye, every thing that was 
e done, any where in her presence, by the 
4 deceptive art of the order. One day, 



263 


u amidst a throng of people, she chanced to 
“ observe the Shi’ich, or man of peace, in 
i( whose possession she had left her child, 
“ though to every other eye invisible. Pi ompt- 

ed by maternal affection, she inadvertently 
“ accosted him, and began to inquire after 
“ the welfare of her child. The man of peace, 
“ astonished at being thus recognized by one 
<e of mortal race, sternly demanded how she 
“ had been enabled to discover him. Awed 
“ by the terrible frown of his countenance* 
“ she acknowledged what she had done. He 
“ spit into her eye, and extinguished it for 
6t ever.” 

The deceptive power, by which the men of 
peace are believed to impose upon the senses 
of mankind, is still termed, in the Gaelic lan¬ 
guage, Druid-eachd; founded, probably, on 
the opinion entertained of old, concerning the 
magical powers of the Druids. Deeply versed, 


269 


according to Caesar’s information, as the 
Druids were, in the higher departments of 
philosophy, and probably acquainted with 
electricity, and various branches of chemistry, 
they might find it easy to excite the belief of 
their supernatural powers, in the minds of the 
uninitiated vulgar. 

It is still believed, that the Shi’ichs, or men 
of peace, are present on all occasions of pub¬ 
lic entertainment, as at funerals and weddings, 
and even at fairs; and that they are there 
busily employed, though invisible to mortal 
eyes, in abstracting the substantial articles and 
provisions which are exhibited, and in sub¬ 
stituting shadowy forms in their stead. Ac¬ 
cordingly, it is in the memory of many, that 
some persons, whose faith in this mythology 
was strong, used to abstain from eating any 
thing that was presented on such occasions, 
believing it to be unsubstantial and hurtful. 


270 


The peevish envy and jealousy, which the 
Shi’ichs are believed to entertain towards the 
human race, render the Highlander cautious 
of conversing freely concerning them. On 
Friday , 1 particularly, they are supposed to 
possess very extensive influence; they are be¬ 
lieved on that day, in an especial manner, to 
be present with their rivals of mortal race; 
and to be extremely jealous of what may be 
said concerning them; if they are spoken of 
on that day, it is with apparent reluctance, 
and they are uniformly styled the Daoine ma - 
tha , or good men . 

Indeed, it is a maxim among the High¬ 
landers to say nothing of them but good. 


1 Why this day is considered as peculiarly sacred to 
the men of peace, cannot now be discovered: perhaps 
that was the day which the Druids used to set apart for 
their solemn rites. 



271 


Being supposed always, though invisibly, pre¬ 
sent, they are, on all occasions, spoken of with 
respect. In general, all conversation con¬ 
cerning them is avoided; and when they are 
casually mentioned, their apprehended dis¬ 
pleasure is carefully averted, by adding some- 
propitiatory expression of praise. 

May we not, it may be asked, in all this 
superstition, recognize the character and feel¬ 
ings of a once powerful order of men; who, 
possessing a deep knowledge of the secrets of 
nature, and a philosophy, which, by the testi¬ 
mony of the most respectable ancient writers* 
was of a very exalted kind; found themselves 
reduced to seek shelter in caves and forests, 
deprived of the high influence they once en¬ 
joyed, and stript, no doubt, of the wealth 
which they had, through a series of ages, ac¬ 
cumulated ? And is it not to this source that 
we are to ascribe the envy and jealousy, still 


272 


supposed to be entertained by their invisible 
representatives of later ages, against the in¬ 
vaders of their ancient privileges and rank ? 

That this mythology is still preserved in 
some degree entire, through the lapse of so 
many centuries, and that the same character 
and feelings are ascribed at this day to the 
Daoine Shi’, that may be supposed to have 
belonged to the Druids, on the destruction of 
their order, should not appear surprising. 
There is nothing we know, which takes a 
move powerful or lasting hold of the unen¬ 
lightened mind, than superstitious opinions. 
Whilst historical facts are lost or disguised, 
superstitious opinions are handed down from 
age to age : they are imbibed at an early pe¬ 
riod of life, and transmitted from father to 
son. 

The Shi’ichs are believed, in the tradition¬ 
ary legends of the Highlanders, to be of both 


273 


sexes; as we know, from the testimony of an¬ 
cient history, the Druids also were. In Fla¬ 
vius Vopiscus, 1 we have the following story 
of the Emperor Diocletian. 

“ Whilst he lived amongst the Tungrians, 
66 (now Brabant) being yet of low rank in the 
“ army, as he was one day settling the account 
<c of his board with a Druidess with whom he 
“ had lodged, she said to him, Diocletian, 
“ thou art too avaricious, thou art too nig- 
66 gardly.” * When I am emperor,” replied 
he, “ I shall be generous.” “ Jest not, Dio- 
Ci cletian,” said the Druidess, “ for emperor 
“ thou shalt be, when thou hast slain the boar. 
“ ( Aper .”) “ The saying sunk deep into Dio- 
“ cletian’s mind; he hunted boars assiduous- 
66 ly, and took care always to be in at the 
t£ death, but found himself as far from the 


1 In Numeriano. 


s 



274 * 


“ purple as ever. At length, however, on the 
“ murder of the Emperor Numerianus, by 
<c his father-in-law Arrius A per, he seized 
“ the opportunity of avenging the emperor's 
66 death, and of raising himself to the purple, 
“ by plunging his sword into the heart of the 
66 assassin: 6< I have now,” said he, in allu¬ 
sion to the prophecy of the Druidess, “ slain 
66 the fatal boar.” 

It is the general opinion, among the High¬ 
landers, that mortal men have sometimes co¬ 
habited with individuals of the Shi’ich race. 
Such mistresses are called Leannan Shi’; and 
by their assistance, their mortal paramours 
have been frequently favoured with the know¬ 
ledge of many things present and future, 
which were concealed from the rest of man¬ 
kind, particularly, it is related, that by such 
communications, the knowledge of the medi¬ 
cal virtues of many herbs has been obtained. 


275 


The Daoine Shi’ are said, in their turn, to 
have sometimes held intercourse with mis¬ 
tresses of mortal race. 

The following legend, which seems evident¬ 
ly to refer to a period previous to the extinc¬ 
tion of the order of the Druids, is common in 
tradition. 

“ An illustrious youth of that order be- 
“ came enamoured of a fair damsel of the 
“ daughters of men; such was the love which 
66 he bore to her, that he wished, for her sake, 
“ to quit the rank and happiness which he 
66 enjoyed in his sacred recess. He petitioned 
“ the men of peace for leave to abandon their 
“ society, and to become an ordinary mortal; 
“ and his request was granted, upon condi- 
“ tion that he should previously supply his 
“ loss to the society, by begetting three chil- 
“ dren by his mistress, who were to be asso- 


276 


u dated with their order in his room. He 
ei joyfully embraced the terms, and waited pa- 
“ tiently for the period of his release. His 
“ mistress returned his love with equal ar- 
66 dour, and resorted every day to the Duri- 
shi\ or hill of peace , in the forest where her 
“ lover resided. In the course of this com- 
merce, the condition of his release was at 
“ length fulfilled, and he was about to be uni- 
<e ted to his mistress in the abodes of men. 

“ The brothers of the young woman, how- 
“ ever, had, for some time, observed the fre- 
“ quent visits which their sister made to the 
<e forest, and became jealous of her intercourse 
st with some concealed paramour; one day, 
66 they watched her steps, and traced her to 
<£ the sacred hill, the Dun-shi’, where they 
“ caught her in dalliance with her lover. 
6f They were strangers to his rank and order; 


277 


“ they were ignorant of his honourable in- 
“ tentions towards their sister, and, yielding 
“ to the first sallies of their rage, they sacrifi- 
6i ced the unfortunate youth, together with 
“ his children, to their fury.” 

In this legend, there seems to be an obvi¬ 
ous reference to a period, when the men of 
peace, that is, the Druids, were considered, 
with the exception of the sacred mystery, and 
solemn obligations of their order, as mere or¬ 
dinary mortals. And it would even seem, 
that in certain cases, and under certain con¬ 
ditions, those who had been initiated in these 
mysteries, might be relieved from their vows. 
All this is human, and belongs to the order 
of man. The shades of this ancient institu¬ 
tion, it is true, have, with the lapse of many 
centuries, become very faint; but in the eye 
of the antiquary and philosopher, it may ap- 


pear of some importance, to exhibit the faint¬ 
est tints, and to concentrate, from every quar¬ 
ter, the remaining lights, which tend to illus¬ 
trate the history of this august and once pow¬ 
erful order. 


THE END. 


Edinburgh : 

Printed by James Ballantyne & Co. 

























^ V 

o o 



k y 
•i *f> 

o 




0 " 


0 ^ A * 0 , % * 11 ' V - 

<£' .^VA* r ^ 

,V i\\?y,//71 ® 
d « !SSxw2rv///Sl 7 : 



** .<f 

c A 

„v ^ 


7 - 

* oV V ^ ^ ' V 'A V. 

s' <0> <■ . y o V K "* x ' \ X/ / *. * S S 

o- „ ^ * * * ’ <A ^ 1 8 « <P. a\ c 0 N c * 7 a ,0 

** °o 0° A A \* .* ° y 

0 ca 



'>* V 

o 0 






w 


$■ o 




0 N 


o „ * 7A » s *^> 

^ * ff I^ xv 


V 




$ 



0 0 ^9 

O' <t- s * 0 r c- 

<$ 'A^JVV -#■ «% 

* * S " ^ ^ » 




“ .A'' <%> -* 

^ ^\> .-Ti. S 



' . V "% ° 

V* A V 


o 


v * 





,*0 \ 
o ^ * 


■'bo' 





' -f V 

* "V A x 


V' o ^V X ‘ oSo A-"’^ 

i y> av * c^<\ * O 

f . ^ v * ° .'acsm ; 

: *'^S*t* ■< * 

> ^ 

->* «CT ‘A ** JT . . T * * .^ V ^ 'JH«I i W 

N ,o^ „'<*■», V vVyiy* > J>' 



0 » \ 




A V 



vV 


^ A ° 

C>, * 

65 -V ° 

•*> -X? ^ ° 



<<? 


<x 


aV */> - 

A ■> 

}> *> ^ -,V' <5" ^ ’' / ^' v ^i v 4. * *, 

« c „ \" ' 1 H « ^ ' 0 * X " N '■ -'...A. 

= x° °xv " ' 5 <J|Jlr ^ ^ ^ 

S’ \' *7 v \ <t A O ^ \ C <; 

»' ,# .. ^/')«*’/ , , „ °'^, * " ' ,\ X> >s»» I? 

v' .>’:«lv > //i,*'. v . v . 



<V Or 



rV> <t ^ " <p 

^ v ^ ^i 0 ? 9 p- 2 _ -f 

^ - < M. ' ■/ ■ ■ r 'p> ^ 

“" ^ •*■ ^ V 


O0 

A ^ 



r ‘ A‘ 

c ^ *ky 

/. ^ y z 

^ % 4 

-to v, ■^ , 

s . ^ 



1 >•. 
















































* 

V> ' s " v ' 2 

C/A. c ^ - 

•/ 

* vi !T v av-^ 

*** ° '' a& \^ * <y 

A 




' ° * K \^ A c 0 N G > ^© ' * * ' o^° N * v 1 

\ \, ^ ° 0° * v 

^ - */* V s » 


^,'v 

o5 ^ c °^- ;r - g5 ^ -" 

o‘-A*’-/,...,%. V N \.' ’ZJ» , 

ty T- <? $, * 'P ' -jfc-/ ✓ 

* jAW/h r V-,. A- * vim3§. * & 





^ * i> N 



" *W* V 



n 

>, «rs>' : * ■»■ o> •*• -.-51 

■/ o . . <\ ’25, ^ / , A s s \6 y o * ,v * <\ 

sX \ c 0 * c 9 ^ rxV « V I « * ^ A 0 N 

' -J> C. £ ~,/rt 7 r>* . + .’* 

\ ^ <rV v\\YA ^ x 


*a V 


?y 0 ^. 




O * » i ' * v* v s * , . 

,'*<>/• *& V X s 


:^ V W = 

>• '^ y/ 
*•, *o.°' „\0° %/»., 



. » , . A- y * 1 N 0 ' A 0 ' 


A V , . ^ ’ 8 I ' \ V s * v r - x 

'' ' ,0^ V V s'lrw ^ 

^ i ^ « ^SX/^% ° ^ ^ ~ f ^ Lw,w ^ _ x 

.V <p_ - >-?] ip=f ° 'S' ° *> >\^’ 

I® « oV ^ - 

r o „ x * A. 'o ♦ # c ^ N v 6^ <T y o i, X ^ \\ 

A . c ^ ^% 0°■ 1 -'-’ * ’ ^ c 



s ^ ^ 


AV 






0 N 


^ ^CCM v x o » rL> s <1 ^ o ^ 

^ s ,, r *>. *.o ««’ i 0 ' 

^ ,y c:* v s' ~J+ > S? ***»/• 

^<1 t- 4 <* N x<S#*X^^ik^ ^ ^ ^-1 r-^ O ^ 




«• y <f 


o '</• ,4 V 

7. ^ '\ 


. v* ^ ® 

* ^ 



r ^ 











































































